


On The Tides of Time

by TheEmberWoods



Category: One Piece
Genre: F/F, Multi, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-18
Updated: 2017-11-06
Packaged: 2018-12-03 22:46:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 108,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11541996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheEmberWoods/pseuds/TheEmberWoods
Summary: Kailina Sireon is a young woman who's hardly seen the world, even within her small corner of the East Blue. With a crippling illness running through her body, she might meet the same fate as her late mother before she can see what lies beyond the familiar horizon. Months after her brother leaves to search for a cure - with no word of his progress - Kailina decides to leave home against her family's wishes before it's too late. But an unplanned meeting with the Straw Hats might just lead her down an unthinkable path - the one of a pirate!ZoroxOC.





	1. One Last Hope

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 1: One Last Hope

The silence hurt the most. The pain coursing through my numb legs was bordering on bearable, the knowledge that my father would probably never return home soon enough, the non-existent memories of my late mother – they all hurt far less than the empty space beside me. Everything hurt less than the silence. It wasn’t all silent, though. I could hear the faint signs of life that bustled outside of the room’s door: the maids and servants going about their daily business as time ticked on. Time that was counting down every second of the life I had left. Everyone was waiting, myself included, for the day that I no longer could draw breath into my lungs. The illness that would one day stop everything hung over my head like a dark cloud, and everyone who was left in the house could see it. They could see the stormy dark mass that followed me around wherever I went: it reflected in their eyes whenever they saw me stumble out of bed and drag my body down the hall. It reflected in their carefully chosen words and tones as they spoke to me, ushering me to go back to bed and lay down for the day. Then it reflected in their actions as they firmly placed their hands on my skin and forced me back into my room: under the covers and out of sight. I suppose it would be easier if I had been a good girl and simply waited in my bed. Waited for the day where I was gasping and wheezing, but couldn’t make a sound. Waiting for the time when my body would no longer listen to my commands, just as my legs disobey me.

To be honest, it was the waiting that was killing me, not the illness itself.

When my brother left, the waiting became that much more unbearable. He walked out of the house when the illness took my legs from me, without even saying goodbye, or taking me with him. He had left a note, saying that he was going out to search for a ‘cure’. But I knew better. He would absolutely look for one, but it doesn’t exist. It’s an incurable illness that none have survived. It even took the life of my mother – which I believe to be the reason why my father never returns home. I think they both left because they realized that they were waiting long before I ever did.

“Miss Kailina, may I come in?”

A voice sounded at the door, but I didn’t answer it. It wouldn’t matter if I did or not anyway: they would enter no matter what response they got.

“I’ll take that as a yes, Miss Kailina.”

Throwing the covers over my head, I sunk into the pillows as much as I could, inching my body further down the bed as I did so – as far as my slightly responding legs would allow.

“Miss Kailina, I doubt your brother would be pleased to find you like this each day.”

The senior butler, Grist, spoke gently as he entered the room, commenting on the sight before him as I heard the familiar wheels of the food tray being pushed along the tiles. His words rung true, however, I found myself unwilling to move from my position or even acknowledge his presence.

“How are you feeling today, Miss?”

There was no reply uttered from my mouth as I heard the metal clangs as he prepared lunch. If I was being honest, it was a better day than most. Even though the numbness still encased my legs, there was a little bit of strength in them today: enough to make a difference.

“Perhaps you are up to a stroll on the beaches later in the afternoon? It might lift your spirits.”

More of his words met with silence as I clenched the soft fabric between my hands, sinking even further into my cocoon as I waited for Grist to leave the room. He did so shortly after, with a long sigh that was barely audible and tinged with something akin to regret. The soft ‘click’ of the door sounded his retreat went unnoticed for some time as I remained hidden from the world.

If only Kairius was here… We could walk in the sand, and he would tell me stories he had heard about our father, or anything at all he could remember about him. Mom too. Then everything would be better. He never stared at my legs: the mess of gauze and bindings that sometimes stained with blood and other sticky and unsettling liquids. Not like those that were left here did. They didn’t understand the limits of the sickness. Not like my brother and I did.

The scent of the chef’s cooking brought me from the warm depths I had plunged myself into, and I slowly brought the covers down from over my head, pulling myself upright as I reached for the plate that was set for me. My legs strained with the effort of stretching my upper body and soon I felt the skin burn against the sheets they molded to perfectly only seconds before. The food was now lukewarm, most of the heat had been lost during my time spent under the covers.

I told myself that that was the reason I had stayed under there all this time.  
I’m not entirely sure if I believed it or not.

Soon enough, the plate was scraped clean of food, and the glass had been emptied. But before I could fall back into bed and remain unmoving for the remainder of the day, I pulled my legs over the side of the bed and pushed myself off, grabbing the crutches that were propped up against the wall before any weight was placed on my legs and properly positioned them under my arms. Slowly, and unsteadily, I made my way to the corner of the room, where two mirrors were positioned. Thankfully, they weren’t angled in such a way that I could see myself from my position in bed, but they were, however, angles so that the small mirror placed higher on one wall only showed my upper body, while a longer mirror placed on the adjacent wall only showed my lower body.

The girl in the smaller mirror was young, and she had creamy and fair skin with white-blue eyes that seemed to stare right through herself. Soft white-blond locks of hair flowed down in long, sweeping curves down to her waist. However, she looked to be quite frail. Something about the hollowness in her features: the hollowness in her eyes as they glinted in the dim light that was found in the corner of the room. Something was unsettling to me as I looked in the reflective surface.

Fancy, yet rather uncomfortable clothes itched at my skin as I continued staring at myself – the sweat my body had produced was making the clothing unbearable when I was out of the warmth and comfort of my bed. Even my knees were starting to feel the pressure of the weight my body held. However, I ignored this and looked in the second mirror, only seeing the swaying cloth that covered my legs. With a sigh pushing itself from my lips, I gently pulled the fabric up my legs, just above my knees as I peered into the mirror with apprehension.

The bandages that had been wrapped around my legs just this morning had already started to turn red, and I could see the muscles shaking slightly with the strain of holding myself upright. With another sigh, the fabric fell to the floor, covering the sight of the bandages as I slowly straightened out the wrinkles in the skirt. It was a weird feeling – or perhaps a weird non-existent one: to not feel your own legs, yet to be standing on them. To not even realize their frailty, but to see it clearly reflected…

But it was also a weird feeling to see them covered up by fabric.

Before Kairius had left, or perhaps I should say, before the illness took the feeling in my legs, I never wore any kind of fancy garments. What was the point? They would only be ruined by sweat and blood and pus: three things that my legs produce the most of these days. My brother realized this. He always made sure what I wore was easy to get around and comfortable. Whether it be a baggy t-shirt that was much too big for me, or shorts and a sweater. Whatever worked, worked. But since my brother left, the servants keep pushing and pushing to do things differently. To sacrifice my comfort for appearances – I am the daughter of an important man, after all. Not that I blame them. I haven’t been acting very lady-like at all these past few years. Ever since I was diagnosed with the illness and father stopped coming back home. Who knows where that man is now?

I’m not sure I want to know, in all honesty.

With another glance in the upper mirror, I straightened the frills and buttoned the buttons that had come undone in my tossing and turning before looking to the doors that lead to the balcony, a mouth curled into what looked to be a mixture of a smile and a frown caught my eye as I did so. Before I could see any more of myself in the mirror, I continued on, heading towards the doors as confidently as I could. It took several tries to place the crutches in a stable enough position to open both doors, which I had to resort to opening them separately to have any success, however, the warm breeze that caressed my skin was well worth the effort. The scent of the sea wove its way into my core as carefree as the waves themselves were, the white crests that dotted the water leisurely appeared and disappeared to their own rhythms. Although, that was to be expected on a day like this: with gentle winds, warm weather, and sunny skies, nature seemed to agree that today would be a good day.

“A stroll on the beach might lift my spirits, eh?”

A quiet mutter left my lips as I gazed out to the calming scenery, scanning the horizon for any kind of ship that could’ve set its course for the island. It was a ritual I had adopted when I mustered up the strength on the good days that came sparingly. At first, it had been to spot my father’s ship, hoping that one day he’d arrive home. It quickly turned into watching for any letters that he had sent, either by sea or by sky. After those stopped coming, it had been simply looking out to see just how much of the world was out there – what could lie beneath the waters, what could sail above them… Just what was out there?

What kind of adventures were out there, waiting just as I was, to be explored?

At that time, the only difference was that I was waiting to get better. That was nearly five years ago, a year after I had been diagnosed. Even now, I still hold the same sentiment with the ocean: How many mysteries are out there, waiting to be seen? Now, the word ‘waiting’ had much more weight to it. It was a time limit. How long would it wait for me? How long could I wait to see it? For me, time was now a valuable commodity.

I couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to forget about time, and live life as it was intended: day to day, hour to hour, minute to minute… Maybe even second to second?

Movement caught my eye, and a small boat with a white sail drifted towards the island before being hidden from my view by rocks that littered the shore in uneven patterns. A moment passes, and I wonder if I had just seen an illusion. But, it passes, and I quickly waddle to the edge of the balcony, throwing the crutches into the hedge below as I sit myself on the stone railing before throwing my feet over to the other side and dangling them in the air. With two deep breaths I push myself off the ledge, falling shortly before landing on my back in the hedges, which cushioned my fall slightly.

With cuts and scrapes making themselves known across the skin of my back and arms, and leaves and twigs burrowing into my hair and making all kinds of intricate knots, I quickly reach for my crutches and scramble off of the hedge, leaving strands of hair behind as I hobble as fast as I could towards the sand that stood between me and the boat.

“That poor girl, she hardly ever leaves the room now that Master Kairius is gone…”

The female voice stopped me in my tracks, and I quickly hid behind one of the many marble statues that dotted the island estate, adding to the well-manicured garden that spread out from the mansion that was at the heart of the small island.

“Those two got along so well! It’s a shame that he left. How long has it been? A few months?”

“I think that it’s been two months since the young Master left. It’s been three since Miss Kailina has been bedridden.”

My heart pounded loudly in my ears as I heard the voices of the maids getting ever closer, speaking casually to each other as they enjoyed the warm weather and fresh air.

“It really is too bad that their father hasn’t been to see them since Miss Kailina had fallen ill. You weren’t there when they first found out about the sickness, were you?” Warm wind was met with silence before the maid continued, “The look on that poor man’s face – he was heartbroken. Master Kairius didn’t understand yet what the illness meant, but the look on his face was clear as day. He knew exactly what the illness was. I’ve heard rumors from the others that have been here longer than me, that the late Mistress had the same exact disease. It must’ve been hard to watch another family member come down with it…”

My hands clenched the wood of the crutches tightly as I listened to them speak. At least they weren’t coming any closer to the sand that covered the island behind the mansion, which was where the statue I was hiding behind was located.

“And with the young Miss looking like the spitting image of her mother, too. If you compared the picture of the late Mistress in the study with Miss Kailina now, you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference if not for the young Miss having her father’s eyes! I suppose that’s why the Master doesn’t visit anymore, he can’t look at his daughter without being reminded of his wife-“

“I’d think that that is enough gossip for one day, ladies. If you would happen to take in your surroundings, you would see that Miss Kailina has decided to open the doors to her balcony to partake in the warm weather we’re enjoying. If she were to hear what the two of you were saying, why, her heart would be breaking in no time! The Master is not so foolish enough to confuse the sickness of his beloved wife to that of his beloved daughter. He will return home as soon as he can to nurse Miss Kailina back to health himself when his work allows him to do so. Now, please return to the tasks at hand. There is much to be done.”

A small smile appeared on my face as I listened to Grist scolding the two maids before ushering them inside, the ladies whispering apologies as they entered the mansion once more. However, there was little truth to what he said. If father had wanted to return home, he would’ve by now. And even if he couldn’t, he would send letters to keep in touch as he did once so long ago. Right now, I’m probably the least of his worries at the moment. But that was okay. Kairius told me as much as I needed to know about him as he moved on without me, and I’m still proud to call him my father. That’s good enough for now.

“Ah… Sir. Where in the world are you? Do come back soon, Miss Kailina would do much better with family around her…”

A mutter that would be scattered by the wind before it could’ve found its way into my room on the second floor slowly drifted enough to be heard by me as I peeked around the statue to see Grist retreat back into the mansion. With silent thanks offered to Grist for his concern, I turned my back on the mansion and started slowly making my way across the loose terrain on my crutches, my feet making two continues lines in the golden sand as they dragged behind, unable to keep up with my pace as I was unable to ensure their position in the sand.

Everything was different when walking on sand. The elevation was different for my two feet at all times, the way the sand shifted away and came rushing back as I set my foot down… It soon became too much of a hassle to try and deal with when the feeling in my legs disappeared, that I simply let them be dragged along as I trusted my crutches to be my legs. Of course, this normally had disastrous effects, but with much pleading done on my end, I was able to convince Kairius to modify the design of the crutches to allow it to traverse over sand much more easily with more stability.

It worked, for the most part.


	2. A Dream: Renewed!

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 2: A Dream: Renewed!

Sand had seeped its way into every layer of my clothes and had soon found refuge in the curves of my skin, rubbing the smooth expanse raw as the coarse grains shifted with every movement I made. I could only imagine the hard pellets finding their way into the tightly wrapped bandages that confined the pale skin of my legs and agitated the flesh, causing the blood to blossom from the flesh and imprint fresh patterns on the already lightly stained fabric. However, despite the discomfort I was feeling, I pulled myself back onto unsteady wooden feet, still feeling the shifting sands under the crutches that threatened to betray my trust and drop me where I stood. The awkward angle they were held at gave me no advantage either and the somewhat solid ground hidden beneath the treacherous sands had faded as soon as the view of the mansion had been marred by the rocky formations that sprung out of the sand as blemishes on the smooth and golden surface, which proved to make traversing over the sand that much more difficult. However, because of the rocky formations, I was no longer visible to the eyes of the servants inside the house, and the boat I had seen had also gone undetected. This meant that Grist couldn't have disposed of the evidence of a ship landing on the island – at least, any ship that wasn't my father's or my brother's.

With my breath coming out in sharp, uneven gasps, I continued my journey. My arms burned in the exertion of quickly moving the crutches – which dug into my armpits quite painfully – in an attempt to prevent them from slipping out of my reach, which they had done several times before. Even as I hugged the rocks, seeking some sort of solid ground to help with my troubles, no solace was found. And with my frantic exertion came little progress, the two trails that marked the path my feet took changed from smooth and fluid lines to jagged and erratic patterns that temporarily scarred the sand's smooth surface.

In the frustration that threatened to bring tears to my eyes, I threw the crutches away haphazardly, promptly falling to my knees and hitting the sand for what seemed like the thousandth time in the span of only ten minutes. With only a second of contemplation and hesitation, I reached for the rocks closest to me, which, thankfully, were in arms reach. Pulling myself forwards through the sand, using the rocks as an anchor, I managed to make a lot more progress, even if sand now coated my clothing and dusted my hair. I most certainly wouldn't hear the end of it from Grist after this escapade: ruining the fancy clothes, ruining my hair, ruining the bandages that would have to be carefully replaced after the remaining sand ingrained in my bloodied legs was meticulously and painstakingly washed out. Yes, it probably wasn't the wisest choice I could've made, however, I was happy with it. And I would accept all consequences that came my way in my foolish attempt to see who had charted the boat's path to the island.

Sweat poured from my skin, the sand sticking to it uncomfortably as my hands, which were now bloodied from the scratches and cuts entrenched into the skin from the coarse surface of the rocks, continued to pull my limp body towards a goal I was no longer sure existed. The boat could have sailed on, and simply disappeared behind the rocks while doing so. And if that's the case, then the amount of time I've spent trying to chase after it will amount to nothing.

All that I have to show for it is a lot of wasted time. Both the time it took to get this far, and the time it will take to return to my room and scrub all of the golden grains from my skin.

Perhaps they were right: trying to keep me in my room whenever they could. It was blatantly obvious to me now that I could no longer solely take care of myself. If what was once a minor inconvenience could become something that could easily stop me in my tracks, then what else could stop me? Perhaps I had finally figured it out, and the hollowness I had seen in my eyes earlier had merely reflected the ominous cloud that hung heavy over my head.

If the world doesn't have time for someone like me, someone who could now no longer keep up, then what else is time good for? It's not a currency, yet we spend it. It's not an item, yet we buy it…

If I can't use it, what good is it to me?

Somehow, it was a saddening thought. One that stopped the movement of my arms, and allowed my aching fingers to pry themselves away from the weathered and jagged surface. My breath slowed, returning to the usual quiet, small breaths that now sounded more like desperate gasps. Frantic for more air to fill my lungs, my upper body twisted so that I was now lying on my back. My legs followed suit as best as they could, but remained twisted as I was gazed up at the unblemished blue sky. The waves calmly washed over the sand, the pleasing sound soothed my exhausted body as my breathing evened out.

Birds cried in the distance, waves washed to shore and drifted out to sea once more, the sun burned in the sky just as it had done countless days before, and will do countless days after this. Warm winds disturbed the shifting sand into waves of their own, which drifted over the beach, adding another layer to the sand that covered my being. However, I paid it no mind, and stared into the blue expanse of the sky, unflinchingly challenging the hidden answers that lay in it.

" _Kailina, what do you dream of?"_

The sound of my brother's voice echoed in my mind, a distant, yet tantalizingly close memory played across the infinite blue background my eyes continued to search.

" _I dream of getting better. Where is this coming from, Kairius?"_

What had happened only months ago seemed to span across years and years in my mind, and the voice that came back to me was that of a child's, a weird, but suiting combination.

" _What about after you get better? What do you dream of then?"_

" _I…"_

At that moment, I had realized that I didn't actually have an answer to his question. He seemed to realize this, didn't press it any further, and soon after a quick conversation, left the room. I didn't question it, and the thought of dreams drifted from my mind the minute he exited. The supper we had that evening was strange – a weird energy that silenced us. The strange, reluctant way he ate that night should have given me an indication, but I saw nothing wrong.

The next morning he had left without a trace.

A frown pulled at the corners of my lips, and I gave into it freely. My eyes turned from one blue expanse to another, and as I stared into the distance where the two collided – the only place where an infinite amount of possibilities could ever exist – as my mind reeled, searching for the answer to the question Kairius had asked before he left. What had my dream been before I got sick?

What had happened to my dream from back then?

My mind returned to the last memory I had of my brother, father, and myself being in the same room, only about a month before my legs started to crack open and leak blood, pus, or a mixture of both. My father had asked me, in his deep and rumbling voice,  _"Kailina, what is your dream?"_

Surprised and confused by his question, as he wasn't one to talk when we went into the study after supper, something he had insisted upon when he was home, and we all sat in the room for a few hours. Just being together, and relishing in that fact. I had repeated the word, as if trying to pull some sort of meaning from it when the sounds twisted off of my tongue,  _"My dream?",_  as he had always been a practical man – one who focused on goals and numbers rather than dreams and ideas.

Kairius, who took my childish repetition of the word to mean a lack of understanding, also pitched in,  _"Yeah. The thing you're going to chase after no matter what."_  His kind voice getting closer as we all sort of gravitated towards each other, meeting in front of the unlit fireplace which stood at middle of the room – father loved that which was symmetrical, you see.

I had long since forgotten what I had said back then to make father laugh so happily and so loudly that Grist ran in wondering what was wrong moments later, Kairius was laughing at father rather unsure of what was the right thing to do in such times. That memory had become so important to me when the first few months of the illness slowly passed by, and I had always pictured that scene with a fire burning warmly in the background – and had even drawn it in a sketchbook that has probably been collecting dust in whatever corner it had disappeared to.

That dream had disappeared from my mind when the illness consumed it, all else had been pushed to the background as I could only try to piece together the facts from how the adults were acting: running, worrying, fussing, and rushing around as if it were the end of the world. To them, it probably was. To me, it had just been another minor bruise or scrape, and I spent my days begging Kairius to help me sneak out from under the ever watchful gaze of Grist. We couldn't go very far, but it was far enough.

A memory that stood out to me from all the others was the one where I realized my father had come back home. But I never saw him.

One night, I had snuck out of my bed to meet up with Kairius, after asking him to take me to the roof to watch a meteor shower I had heard from Grist would be happening. I had hoped to wish upon several stars that night for my legs to get better, but when I neared the door, I could hear father's voice echoing throughout the halls. I had been excited, my hand eagerly placed on the door and ready to yank it open, run over to my father and hug him tightly. However, the tone of his voice told me that he would not appreciate it if I ran out of my room past bed time. Pressing my ear firmly to the door, I could hear my father's voice, which was quiet, so as not to wake me, but seething with anger nonetheless,  _"-you need to stop going against Grist's rules, Kairius. Sneaking out with your sister when she should be in her room is not okay. You don't understand how serious this is. Kailina needs to rest as much as-"_

It was unheard of for my brother to cut our father off. Yet, that night, his voice shook with anger as he spoke,  _"How do you know what she needs, father? You're never around ever since Kailina's been sick! She looks so sad and miserable all the time, and if you keep her bed ridden, she'll be bedridden for her entire life! Her dream-!"_

However, Kairius' anger was nowhere near the level of anger father's voice was seeped with when he next spoke,  _"She'll never do it, Kairius! With how she is now, there's no possible outcome where any of this turns out good! Now, return to your room, and listen to Grist."_  There was a long silence between the two. So long, in fact, that I had thought Kairius had done what father had asked, but before I pulled my ear away from the wood, Kairius' quiet voice sounded,  _"…A dream is something you chase after, no matter what! How can you give up on her like that…? Is the outcome all you think about, father? If the outcome never changes, it's because you don't believe it will change!"_

A door slammed, and I took slow steps away from the door, unable to process what happened. Father left without coming into my room or leaving a note, and when Kairius crept out of his room later, knocking on my door quietly, I pretended to be asleep. I had stopped asking him to sneak away with me after that night, even though he continued to do so anyway.

My eyes stayed glued to the horizon as I remembered the past, allowing the gentle caress of the warm wind to wash over me as my mind drifted farther and farther away from the present. But this time it drifted to the future: and it was met with a blank sheet. There was no plan for the future. No thoughts had been centered on the possibilities, because I had always believed there to be one outcome, no matter which road I decided to take.

Thinking on it now, however, led me to a different path.

If all I have is time, why not spend it?

This single thought led me to the realization that I was no longer going to wait for my brother or my father to return home. No longer was I going to wait for my time to run out. The memories that stemmed from this island also tied me to it: the reason I have to catch that stray boat is because this island is the only thing convincing me to wait!

My tired and battered fingers surged to life once more, my body lurching onto my side as my hands clung to the sharp edges of the rocks and began once again to propel me forward at a speed my new-found determination demanded.

My clothes were disheveled and my bare skin was sliding against the warm sand, but I could not stop myself, not now. Not when the dream I had held so dear to my heart was waiting just around the corner to be rediscovered. Not when my only remaining hope could either be revealed or crushed with just one more scratch. Just one more pull.

My white-blue eyes were awarded with the unbelievable sight of a small moored boat, its single spotless white sail proudly unfurled for all to see the mast the cloth hung on protruded from a small cabin centered in the middle of the boat. The wooden planks of the rather plain looking boat were smooth and unstained from the minimal exposure to the water and wind it must have experienced.

Leaving the jagged rocks behind, my fingers now curled into the sand, feebly gripping the softness that soon slipped away from me, and my body writhed in a union that propelled me forwards slowly as my hands were now also useless to me.

I would not be stuck on this island, waiting.

Not for anything.

My body will not decay in that bed made of slippery sheets as the illness spreads ever further. Invading and feasting on the skin and muscle and nerves of what first would start at my knees and climb higher, just as it climbed before. It would not devour me any further than what it has already. Not on this island.

Shifting up onto my elbows and trailing my fingertips up the smooth planks of wood, and once my arm strained as much as it could, my fingers met with air. Clamping my fingers down firmly I was able to grasp onto the railing of the small boat and pull myself upright: slowly moving onto my knees before properly setting the soles of my feet in the right position before hoisting myself onto them with the help of the ship. Without wasting another second, I managed to pull myself over the side of the boat – doing so whilst standing made it much easier than what it looked from the ground, as the boat only came up just below my chest.

My back hit the wooden surface hard, but the pain of impact soon faded as I took many deep breaths, silently thanking whatever deity was out there that the boat had been stranded on the small island, as well as the fact that I was able to make it in the boat at all. If it had been any larger, it would have been impossible. Jumping has always been a very risky business, as I could easily injure my ankles and feet by not realizing if I had placed them in the correct position or not.

"Who are you?"

The sound of the unfamiliar voice made me lurch my body upright to see where it came from. However, after looking around the boat as well as off of it, there was nobody to see. The only other place it could be coming from was inside the cabin – and the door that lead inside looked like it was firmly shut. Fear should've immobilized every fiber of my being: I was helpless, not a threat at all, and trespassing. However, the only thing I feared was that it did the exact opposite.

Blood pumped through my veins as my heart pounded. Not out of fear, but out of excitement.

"K-"

Taking a deep breath, I kept my emotions in check as I tried to keep a clear head.

"My name is Kailina Sireon. May I ask-?"

"No, you may not."

The voice growled, and even though the person who spoke was behind walls and a door, I could hear them as clearly as if they had spoken right next to me. And the person inside never wavered their level voice to shout or to speak louder. What I was not expecting, however, was the door to slowly creak open, and to see a pair of white-blue eyes staring back at me.

"You said your last name was Sireon, right?"

The eyes appraised me as they reflected light much like a cat's eyes would do in the darkness. And there was darkness in the cabin. Nothing emitted light from inside, which was why the pair of white-blue eyes stood out as the door creaked more and more until it was opened wide for all to see inside.

But all that could be seen were those two reflective orbs staring back at me.

"You're the daughter, aren't you?"

The words met with silence as my mouth tried forming words but my mind was bewitched with the familiar and unsettling eyes glaring at me from the darkness. The eyes shifted, shoes landing heavy on the wood as a hand stretched out and sun-kissed knuckles emerged on the doorframe as the sunlight illuminated the stranger's features as they made themselves known. The other hand remained hidden, and so did the rest of the presence as those eyes looked me up and down.

"You look like hell. Did you drag yourself here?"

Whether the question was more of a statement or a joke, I wasn't sure, but it didn't matter because before I could answer, I found myself looking at my own white-blue eyes widen with surprise as a blade appeared mere inches away from my face. However, another pair of white-blue eyes were reflected in the black coloured steel as well, and I could feel the heat of another body settle in behind me.

"Didn't even flinch, huh? I don't know whether to call that brave or stupid. I guess you are that fool's daughter after all."

The distinctively female voice spoke next to my ears, and I couldn't help the shiver that ran up my spine as her breath hit the nape of my neck.

"Then, you meant to come here? You didn't get stranded or lost?"

The blade never moved an inch as the woman laughed, staying suspended in air until she chose to cut through it. It had an elegant design: the smooth and sharp edge of the blade gracefully attaching to a grooved piece of decorative metal before extending into a sturdy looking wooden staff before again tapering off into decorative metal followed by another blade's blunt end. The metal jutted out slightly to form a point before cutting back in smoothly and continuing to extend to a final point. It was an intricately created weapon that was beautiful to look at. I believe that my brother had once called a weapon that looked similar to this – but only had one blade – a Glaive.

"You mean you came all the way out here to see if I needed help?"

"No. I came all the way out here to steal your ship."

The response had come out of my mouth before I could stop the words. It was silent for a few heart pounding moments before she broke out into laughter once more, retracting the blade from my face as she stood up and held her stomach with her free hand.

"Damn kid, I guess you got your mother's personality! Ahaha! Well, I've had terrible luck for a while now, and it seems like your lucky today so I'll give you something."

The woman sauntered back to the cabin, and I inspected her while she did so.

She looked to be somewhere in her forties somewhere, probably in her early forties, and she had straight white hair that was cut at random lengths and at random angles: which had beads and braids scattered throughout it with seemingly no rhyme or reason behind the pattern. The ponytail most of the longer pieces were able to be included in failed to keep the shorter strands out of her face, and she had a green hairband keeping those ones pushed back. Her ears were pierced in several places: an array of stud, hoop, and chain earrings decorated her cartilage.

She wore a simple dress shirt which had its sleeves folded up to her elbows and wore two leather straps, one slanted across her shoulder and another that connected to the first one that lay below her chest, which now held the glaive and wore flattering black pants along with it. Around her waist was a piece of red cloth that functioned as a fashion statement more than anything else: the leftover material that fell from the knot which kept it to her form flowed behind her as a trail – almost looking like a flag blowing in the wind until she disappeared into the darkness of the cabin once more.

I could hear her rummaging around in there, but with her back turned to me, I could no longer see where she was in the darkness. However, I could only sit in a stunned silence as I waited to see what the eccentric woman would do next.

"Aha! Found it!"

With those words, she bounded back to me, holding a small treasure chest in her hands. With a rather large smile on her face that showed her age as the crinkles at the corners of her eyes made her face seem kinder, somehow.

Sitting down in front of me, after adjusting the weapon strapped to her back slightly, she waited patiently for me to move my legs around so that my back leaned up against the wood as I turned to face her fully.

Instead of speaking, though, as I thought she would, she simply pushed the chest towards me. It all seemed so casual to her. As if this was just another day, and it was no different from the last. Unease crept into my mind, however, I pushed on. Talking with this woman was probably a once in a lifetime opportunity…

Reaching out tentatively, my fingers brushed against the wooden chest and opened the lid, revealing a fruit that looked to be a huge dark purple plum which had dark blue spirals dotting the skin. Judging by the size, it looked as if it would just barely fit into the palm of my hand if I stretched my fingers wide enough. Searching for an explanation as to what exactly the woman was asking me to do, I started asking questions.

"Who are you?"

The first one that came to mind was the same question she had first asked me.

"My name's Kura. The fool I call my brother is your pops."

Even though I had asked the question, I wasn't expecting that kind of straightforward remark. Even though I had guessed at some sort of familial relation when first seeing her eyes, I didn't think it would at all be that close. An aunt that was never mentioned. How strange.

"Why didn't-"

"Your old man never mentioned me because I'm a pirate."

"…Oh."

My unintentional response summed up everything I wanted to say at that moment, and I was subdued into silence again. Kura didn't seem to mind, though, and waited for me to collect my thoughts – a practice I'm sure she had much experience with when talking to father if her eccentric ways extended from her childhood. With the way it all seems to come so natural to her, to be so impulsive, I could only imagine how father might have had trouble dealing with something like that.

If I had known someone like her when I was younger, perhaps it wouldn't have taken me this long to decide to leave.

Which was probably another reason father never mentioned her.

"Where did you get the… Glaive…?"

She seemed a little surprised when I asked her, but the look soon vanished from her ever-changing face as she effortlessly pulled it from its make-shift sheathe and balanced it on her lap, gliding her toughened fingers over the well-maintained weapon with a small smile spreading across her face as if she was drawing a pleasant memory from it.

"Close, but not quite. This is a Dual Glaive, as it has blades on both ends of the staff. It's called the Kikoeru. And as for where I got it…"

She paused, running her hands over the glossy black blade casually, caressing the cool metal with a gentle touch. When she pulled her hand away, the sharpened part which had been white before glowed with the same white-blue colour as Kura's eyes. Instead of being frightened, I was curious.

"It was given to me by your mother – A Sireon heirloom she convinced your father to entrust me with. It's said to be a weapon of legendary deeds, its true power can only be unlocked by a Sireon. I've heard many stories regarding how it ended up being an heirloom, but my favourite one is the one my captain told me."

Her eyes shone as she spoke of the weapon, Kikoeru, and eagerly started her story in the same way that father used to: her eyes grew distant, as if she was reliving the moment the memory had been made and reciting, word for word, what had happened.

"Kikoeru's name is translated to mean 'Sound'. And only a Sireon can cause its metal to sing." She laughed, reading the look on my face before adding, "Captain always liked to keep things short – liked to move from one thing to the next with as little in between as possible. And to me, everything had clicked at that moment."

For whatever reason, either the wide grin on her face as she spoke about her Captain, or perhaps the words she had used, I started to break out into a laugh. She started laughing, too. Soon enough, there were tears in our eyes, and our hands at our sides as we laughed until we couldn't laugh anymore.

I couldn't remember the last time I had laughed so hard that my sides started hurting.

The carefree laughter that spilt from her lips so easily was something I started to crave. Was this what all pirates are like? Being able to laugh at anything because they've given up everything to live how they like? My mind rejected the thought, the memory of my father sparing no kind words for the 'scum of the sea', but my heart embraced it.

What would father think? To hear that a Marine's daughter is considering the life of a pirate?

Although, that could be exactly what I needed to do in order to escape the illness, the island and all the memories that went along with the both of them.

"Now, Kailina. It's time to get serious. That fruit in front of you is called a Devil's Fruit. Some of the strongest people of this age have eaten them and attained great strength and powerful abilities. However, those who eat the fruit are cursed by the sea: they cannot swim. In your case, the fruit might prolong your life by a few years… Although it will not cure you." Kura spoke seriously, and her eyes did not drift from mine as she continued, "But this is not a thing to be taken lightly. If you choose to eat the Devil's Fruit, your will must be strong to overcome the hardships and misfortune that frequent Devil Fruit Users. Tell me, Kailina: what is your dream?"

Before I answered her, I picked the smooth fruit up and cradled it in my hands, letting the weight of the fruit sink in as something that actually exists: something that could carry such power. Surprisingly, however, it was not as heavy as I thought it would be. I could easily carry it in one hand without straining my muscles.

When I responded, I could hear the voice of a child's echo with mine: responding as I had done so in the past by the fireplace. The dream that I had forgotten spilled from my lips almost on instinct.

"To the horizon! I want to sail to the horizon and see everything I can!"

With those words, I bit into the fruit. The bitter taste that touched my tongue was unexpected, and I had to force myself from spitting out the piece at that moment. Another, less enthusiastic but still determined, bite was ripped from the so called Devil Fruit as Kura laughed as loudly as my father had done.

"Well, if you're going to go that far, I guess I should teach you a thing or two before you take off!"

A rush of excitement and something else flowed through me, and I couldn't wait to see what the future held for me now.


	3. Train Me

On the Tides of Time  
Chapter 3: Train Me  


The fruit fell from my hands, one bite marring the skin as it tumbled to the floor and rolled away. Kura made no move to stop its uneven wobble across the wood, and simply stared at my face, curious to see what would happen no doubt. The fruit tasted horrible on my tongue, leaving the foul taste so far in the back of my mouth that I knew it would take more than a few mouthfuls of something better to wash it from my memory. But, that was not the reason I had dropped the so-called Devil’s Fruit.  


The reason my hands let the large fruit slip through my fingers was simply because after just one bite, something felt different. And just as I was trying to pinpoint the reason for this feeling, Kura pulled out a sharp blade from behind her back, the sheathe it came from had been hidden by the dress shirt’s fabric during my brief appraisal of her. She grabbed the fancy material of the skirt I wore, which was now covered in sand, and smoothly started cutting the fabric with the sizable blade.  


“What are you-“  


Before those words had even left my mouth, she already had cut the front of the skirt away: leaving a skirt that went mid-thigh at the front and then followed the seams at the sides down, leaving the back as it was. The bandages I wore were liberally covered in blood, and sand that had gotten up my skirt in my struggle through the sand had plastered over the sticky substance, dyeing the grains scarlet and causing them to stick together in unsightly clumps atop the bandages.  


While I cringed at the sight, Kura forged onwards, skillfully unwrapping the dripping bandages and peeling the coarse fabric from my skin. By the time she had one leg completely unwrapped, the shoe promptly discarded as well, and started working on the other, I finally understood what had felt different.  


Instead of the skin pulling away from the deep scars that got longer and deeper every passing day, tearing itself further and further apart until another trench formed because of it. The skin now seemed to be pulling itself back together, spreading itself over the canyons that had etched themselves into my skin and becoming uniform and smooth once more. The stretching of the skin pulled it taught around my legs, though. And any large movements I made with them felt like I was able to tear the skin apart again myself.  


Kura finished unwrapping the other leg and threw the bandages (along with the footwear) to another corner of the boat before returning into the cabin of the boat, rummaging in the darkness for something else that was hidden within. In her absence, I could feel pinpricks on the soles of my feet, causing my toes to curl up in discomfort as the feeling spread throughout the areas in my legs which had lost feeling: from the toes all the way up to just below the knees, where the ugly marring of my skin stopped. The pinprick feeling persisted even as Kura returned with a few bottles of water in hand.  


“This might be a little cold, but bear with it.”  


She then opened a bottle and bent my leg, causing me to grit my teeth as the pinprick feeling intensified where she touched me, as well as the skin pulling tight around the muscles that moved in order to bend my leg. The white haired woman gently poured the water over my leg, the clean water swiftly coursing down my skin and becoming discoloured before it slid off of my skin and onto the wood below. She repeated this action until one leg was cleaned of blood and sand, and then did the same with the other leg after propping it up to let the water run down.  


Angry red lines ran up my legs, some long, some short, but they all looked as if they were lines drawn by markers instead of scars that were created through years and years of pain.  
“Alright, now that we got that taken care of, let’s get you back home.”  
Kura stepped away, once again heading into the cabin’s depths and returning with a bag slung over her shoulder. She stood in front of me, holding out her hand to me as she ran her fingers through her unruly hair with her other one.  


“C’mon, kiddo. Let’s see how well that fruit worked. We got a lot of training to do in not a lot of time.”  
Grabbing the hand she extended towards me, I was pulled up onto unsteady, but sturdy, legs. She waited for a second, sizing me up with her crystalline white-blue orbs before letting my hand go. After hesitating for another moment, with her eyebrows arched in contemplation as if she was waiting for my legs to give out any second, she disappeared back into the cabin.  


With Kura’s disappearance, my muddled mind was free to try to grasp the situation I was in: what had happened in the span of less than an hour since I had left my room. An eccentric woman, confidently naming herself my aunt who gave me weird fruit that supposedly gives me some kind of powers. Which by now I was starting to believe, as my legs were now responding to my commands with only the skin slightly protesting the movements. It all added up to a rather ridiculous set of miracles that had me laughing at my fortune.  


“Better laugh it up while you can, kiddo. In the next few months, you’re going to find every single muscle in your body: including the ones that you use when you laugh.”  
Before her comment could be dissected by my thoughts, she hoisted two black staffs over her shoulder before jumping onto dry land, motioning for me to follow. Scrambling to follow her instructions, I carefully slid myself off of the ship and spread my feet over the sands, feeling the grains rub between my toes. The sensation didn’t feel as sharp as the sand felt before I had gotten sick, but the feeling was much clearer than the blurry non-descript softness that registered mere hours before – when I was struggling to pull myself forwards on the moving surface after my crutches had been abandoned. Walking back to the mansion now, I could still see the wide trail left behind by my body, the wind not yet taking back its claim on the shore and remaking the smooth appearance.  


It was silent between us during the trek to the mansion. Kura whistled a tune that seemed to take her several tries to get right, starting and stopping several times over with the notes arranged in a slightly different pattern. Her head bobbed up and down, and while I could only see her back, I could only imagine the grand smile spread over her face. Her stride deepened, eagerness seeping into her pores as the whistling tune got faster and faster yet. The sea lapped at the shore, the sound interlacing with the notes that greeted their arrival and Kura’s head lifted up slightly as a breeze passed us by, the salt smell that came with it wrapping around us and then vanishing.  


She seemed to know the acts of the wind and sea intimately. Her body responding to the changes with the slightest touches in the slightest of ways. As if to say: “I hear you. I feel you there, and I hear you. Do you hear me, too?”. I think it did hear her. It heard her whistling song she made not only with her lips, but with her entire being. It rang with this energy and wildness and danger that I could feel to the very pits of my now-functioning body. Shivers ran down my spine like electricity as I gazed at this whirlwind of a woman and somewhere, in the deepest recesses of my heart, I wondered if this was what all pirates were like.  


If they were, could I ever…?  


Shaking my head, trying to rid myself of the thought, my gaze turned to the horizon once more. My eyes searched the sparkling waters where they met the expansive blue of the sky for an answer to the question I was too afraid to ask aloud. The sound of Kura’s whistling faded from my senses as I tried to listen far out into the ocean, foolishly wishing for an answer to be imparted from the immeasurable expanse. Smiling bitterly when no comprehensible answer was given, my eyes swiveled forwards again.  


A flash coming from the spot my eyes had just left brought them back once more with a start, scanning wildly for what could have caused such a thing in the calm weather that had continued for the past week on the island. My heart thundered in my ears and the smell of a damp day captivated me as I squinted my eyes, willing a dark cloud to appear in the distance.  


“A storm’s coming.”  


The sound of my voice startled me. The painful pounding of my heart stopped and the smell of salt caused the one of rain to disappear. Kura’s whistling stopped, and my eyes met her curious ones. She stared at me for an awkward minute, and in that time I strangely felt no need to either change my statement, or explain it. And at the same time she felt no need to question it either, as with a furrowed brow she responded with a statement of her own, “Better hurry home, then.” Kura didn’t start whistling again, and in contrast to her fast walk before, she was now taking smooth and slow strides.  


The slow strides didn’t last long, though, as soon the mansion came into view and Kura all but ran towards it, leaving me to follow her with a difficult run of my own – my body not used to running after such an instantaneous recovery. Within moments, Kura had entered the mansion, flinging open the heavy wooden doors and calling out to all who could hear: “I’m hooooome!”. By the time I had reached the entryway I hide myself in front of the door that had swung itself shut, while the other still creaked until it reached swayed to a stop. Peering through the small opening that had been created, I could see that her voice had caused the servants father had left behind to file out into the entryway. Curious expressions plagued their faces, and a murmur of questions spread throughout them all. Kura grinned, placing her hands on her hips proudly as she looked on at the upset she caused.  


“Kura, I was not expecting you.”  
The crowd parted and Grist was let through, his voice silencing the chatter immediately as he came to a stop in front of the white-blue eyed woman.  


“What? Am I not allowed into my own house anymore, Grist?” Kura’s grin deepened, as did the creases on Grist’s forehead as he sighed deeply at the woman in front of him.  


“I thought you had gotten tired of this house years ago, Kura. Is that not why you left and became a pirate?” Grist’s words were spoken slowly, and I could tell that he was far more capable with dealing with Kura than father ever would be. Even if the frown set on his face indicated he didn’t quite enjoy her presence.  


Before Kura responded, she took in a deep breath and looked around the entryway. The antique paintings and sculptures that lined the walls, the flowers that decorated the tabletops, the ornate stairwell that lead to the second floor, the crimson carpet that lined the floor: sand-free except for the trail that Kura had left behind her. It was a grand house, an artifact in itself, really. Passed down from generation to generation of Marines.  


I could only imagine what my Great Grandfather – the one who had built this house for the Sireons – would say to know a pirate walked in these halls. If he was half as strict and ruthless with pirates as I’ve heard he was, I suppose he would be rolling in his grave right now.  


“Ahhh… It hasn’t changed a bit. How boring. I’m guessing you still don’t do anything for fun around here?” Kura’s observations merely caused another sigh to escape from Grist before he responded in kind, “Kura, you’re just as… charming… as ever, I see. When you were younger, whatever you called ‘fun’ normally had large amounts of danger in it, so, no. I suppose we still don’t do anything ‘fun’ around in this house. I’m sure you can find some sort of adventure out on those dangerous seas of yours. Nothing ever keeps you where you don’t want to be, Kura.”  


She seemed to think about this for a second, before blatantly ignoring his many disguised attempts to pry a reason for her coming home, or convince her to leave (the latter admittedly less disguised) and continuing her own pointed observations, “You’ve aged well, Grist, it seems the house is still in immaculate shape at the very least.” My eyes were drawn to a flash of silver in Kura’s hands: a silver coin that she twirled around her fingers thoughtlessly as her eyes idly followed its path just as mine did as her voice made itself known now in the form of a question.  


“Where’s Klarrissa?”  


My surprised eyes flew from the strange coin to Kura’s face, my mind racing as it tried to figure out how Kura knew Klarrissa, trying to recall if Kura had spoken of her since I met her. Scattered and disorganized, my mind was too slow to figure out the answer and gave up. Dedicating all of its energy into listening closely to the conversation, my heartbeat thudding loudly in my ears.  


“Miss Klarrissa passed away a long time ago, Kura. She died shortly after having Miss Kailina.”  
Kura had stopped playing with the silver coin as Grist started speaking, the smile vanishing from her face without a trace of its existence left behind as a slight frown took its place. Grist continued, “After her passing, Kroitel returned to the navy and after Miss Kailina’s 12th birthday, Klarrissa’s condition made itself known on the young girl. Two months ago, the eldest child, Kairius left to search for a cure.”

“I… see.”  


Shadows painted themselves onto her features, and Kura let out a sigh that rumbled through the silent room, the sound crinkling into a melancholic wave that engulfed me. Kura remained silent, and I could only watch as this strong and fearless woman grieve for a death that happened so long ago. After a few endless moments, she ran her fingers through her braided and beaded hair and regained herself: moving her eyes from the floor to meet mine brazenly as she spoke again, “Kailina looks just like her, doesn’t she? She may have inherited her idiot father’s eyes, but if not for that, you’d never be able to tell the difference!”  


Two heartbeats thundered in my chest and shook my entire being as I held Kura’s gaze, watching a smirk curve her lips in what I could only describe as a predator waiting for its prey to be devoured by its kin. My father did always say that pirates took advantage of everything they could, and my thoughts briefly wondered what Kura had to gain by this betrayal, but before I could form a solid idea, the doors flew open once more and a loud crack rang through the still mansion. I winced at the dent that had surely formed in the walls from the force as Grist’s impeccable figure loomed over me. Shrinking as his eyes traveled up and down my figure, his eyes leaving a scorching path in the wake of his fury, and I waited for his lecture. As always, he didn’t disappoint.  


“Miss Kailina, I hope that your walk on the shore was pleasant.”  
And when I said lecture, I meant an interrogation that should be traversed with the upmost care. One wrong answer, and…  
Well, there’s a reason everyone leaves this island without telling anyone. The walls have ears, after all, and it’s been proven many times that nothing gets said or done in this house that Grist does not hear about.  


“It was most pleasant, Grist.”  
And so, the dance began. Quite literally as well: the steps taken to head into the entryway where Kura waited patiently were followed by an encircling echo. Keenly aware of the sound of his footsteps, I made sure my posture never faltered as I tried to keep track of what answers led me to deeper waters, and which ones swam me back to shore.  


“That’s very good to hear, milady. I’m certain the fresh air livened you up?”  


“It did, Grist. I’m feeling much better,” the sneer on Kura’s face, however, altered the course of the tide in this shark tank “and you wouldn’t believe who happened to wash ashore just as I was about to turn back: Dear aunt Kura!”  
Kura’s sneer faded quickly, just as a smirk sprouted on my own face. Having now come to the center of the room, my eyes met Kura’s unabashedly. Grist still walked around us, the quiet footsteps still moving at a rhythmic pace. Whether Kura liked it or not, we were now on the same island, with the same danger approaching us. If the pirate wanted to get back to safety on her ship, she’d first have to clear the waters.  


“Yes, those dangerous seas of mine were getting a little boring, so I thought I would drop in for a while. See the family: the absentee father, the wandering brother, and the little girl…” Her voice dropped an octave as she spoke of me, leaning in closely to my face as knowing eyes looked deep into mine and a smirk curved its way through her skin so suddenly that mine fell.  


“…Who recently ate a strange fruit from strange seas...”  
The footsteps stopped, missing a beat that my body replaced with a fear-driven heart. Kura’s a pirate, after all. If her life isn’t filled to the brim with excitement and danger and threats, I suppose I should’ve known she’d fill it herself.  


“…And will drown in the waters.”

 

No one moved. It was as if we were a scene frozen in time, like those of books and creations. Like weathervanes without a breeze, grandfather clocks that tolled their last chime and then stilled.  


A lone survivor on a raft and a pirate that controlled the tides. And a shark that plunged into the sea.  


“You didn’t.”  


“I did.”  


“Kura, this is not a game. Tell me you didn’t.”  


“I didn’t,” Her eyes grinned at him, her interest lost on a doomed girl, “but I did think you had eyes, Grist. Was I mistaken?”  
She padded away, her steps silent and mimicked a warrior returning to the shadows after slaughtering her prey: confident, languid, and damning. I could only feel his eyes on me for a second before my arm was wrenched back and I stumbled with it, coming to a clumsy halt as Grist spun me around to face him, his hand still gripping me tightly.  


He bent down, just as Kura did, and looked deep into my eyes. I had never really taken note of his grey eyes before. But, I never really had the chance to see each individual fleck of black that speckled them, so I made sure to say nothing and gaze into his eyes – trying desperately to plead for my life without squeaking out a sound.  


“Kailina…”  
It was an exhaled sound, one of disappointment, anger, and all the other emotions that a parent would use to guilt a child into realizing their faults. For the most part, Grist did a good job of playing the role of parent. And he would frequently use the voice on my brother and I, and it worked as it was supposed to. He was good to us. And yet… I pulled my arm out of his grasp so violently that I spun onto the floor.  


The impact hurt, and I was certainly going to get a bruise, but, rage fueled my body now. Pain, reason, love… everything that wasn’t anger gave way to this rage. And with this rage, I stood up and whipped my arm back out of his grasp once more as he tried to help me to my feet. He looked stunned at my display, and I would say the same if my rage didn’t burn bright enough to blind me.  


“STOP LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT!”  
My voice boomed through the house, and I could hear the sounds of heads peeking out from doors. The sound seemed to echo slightly, the large entryway amplifying it enough to hurt my ears and had the potential to shock me with the unprecedented volume my voice achieved. Which is why my next words were shouted with restraint, but also with just as much anger.  


“Stop looking at me like I’ve been given the worst fate imaginable! All of you keep looking at me with that sad look, but you never say anything about it! I was sick, and I was in pain, and I knew that I probably would be meeting my mother soon! But – Kairius never – I never felt it! I didn’t care that I was sick, because I wasn’t treated like it! Since he left, all you can do is act like you’ve somehow offended a wounded puppy! All the time!”  


My voice thundered, and while I knew I appreciated the care and concern they’ve had for me over the years, the frustration of being coddled and suffocated only boiled over until I had nothing left to burn.  


“You’ve been suffocating me! So excuse me for accepting an offer to be free of the pain and the frustration and those DAMN LOOKS!” Stamping my foot like a child and hearing the pleasing thundering sound that rippled through the room, I continued, “So, I’m going to leave this depressing island and live the rest of my life how I want to live it, and YOU. CAN’T. STOP. ME!”  
And then it was over. In the wake of my rage I was left a quaking mess with my red face scrunched up into an angry expression my body seemed to be unwilling to drop. But eventually, after a minute of a few deep breaths and the repeated clenching and unclenching of my fists, the colouring of my anger faded and my face softened, feeling exhausted from the muscles contorting in such a way.  


Grist said nothing.  


And I was unsure of what that meant.  
My mind was muddled and I couldn’t distinguish what his silence meant from his body language alone. Luckily, I didn’t have to wonder for very long, as my long lost aunt commented on the situation.  


“Well, if there isn’t a little storm in you! I wasn’t sure if Klarrissa had passed on her spunk or if you were burdened with your idiot father’s spine. Glad to see it wasn’t the latter.”  
Her voice seemed to sober my mind, and I promptly ignored her cryptic words and turned on my heel to head outside to let everything settle. However, before I could even make it halfway to the doors I was stopped, not by Grist, but by Kura. She stood in front of me, blocking my path, with her arms folded and her face smug.  


“I wouldn’t go out there if I were you.”  
I blinked at her words, tilting my head curiously to the side as I wondered what she meant by that. Unfortunately, she said nothing else as she watched me. Rolling my eyes at her, I made my way around her and reached the doors without being stopped again. Placing one hand on the door, I glanced behind me, seeing her smirk grow wider, before I turned the knob. In an instant the door was open and fierce gusts of wind soon opened the other door, allowing the sound of rain to drown out everything else, the wet air permeating my skin as the drenched ground outside turned into large pools of water.  


“Told you, kiddo. You might want to listen to me more. It’ll help.”  


Exasperated, I ran my fingers through my hair and met her gaze, which turned out to be beside me.  
“Okay, Kura. You’re going to have to be a little clearer. What. Is. Going. On?”  


“Hahaha! Now you’re asking questions, huh, kiddo? Alright, I’ll give you the short of it, because we’re gonna have to get started right away.”  


“Get started on what?”  
Before I could get an answer out of her, I felt water being poured over me and heard the clang of a bucket sounding from behind us. Confusion painted my face as I looked at her, but she said nothing.  


“What are you-uu…”  
My voice trembled as intense pain ricocheted up my body, the force of it had me falling to the floor and writhing, toes and teeth clenching at the intensity.  


“Ah, that’s one question answered, then.” She crouched down, poking at me before she remembered the situation that I was in, “Oh, right. I forgot to warn you, this might hurt. And it looks like it did.”  


“You…don’t…say…?!”  
She shrugged at my strained response, and looked out towards the rain. Or, she would be, had there been any. But had cleared up as soon as it set in it seemed. Bewildered, I looked to Kura for an answer, which she seemed gracious enough to give.  


“See, when you were having your whole hissy fit – and I mean, it’s good and all you’re getting your feelings out there and whatnot, but you might wanna work on the delivery – I went out and got a bucket of seawater. And then, you know, poured it over you.” She laughed a little at this, but quickly got over it and continued, “So, it seems that when seawater touches your legs, they go back to the way they were before: useless and bleeding and whatnot. We can probably add a little time to the countdown of when the effects hit you… But that’s for another day.”  


“O…kay?”  


“Now, as to what Devil Fruit you have, it seems to be the Storm Storm Fruit,” She cut off any questions with a hurried follow up to the revelation, “there’s a book, don’t worry about it. But hey! You’ve got one of the better ones! It’s a Logia type that allows you to have control and create storms. Don’t really know what that means, but it sure sounds cool.”  
Looking at my deadpan expression, which she ignored, her voice started again, “But hey, we’ll see what we can learn by the time I’m through with you! We’re already learning so much! For example, when seawater touches the skin on your legs, your previous wounds appear… But when normal water hits your skin, it reveals the scars, but doesn’t open them again. It also seems like you’re only feeling a lot of pain – the pain of your condition – but you aren’t weakened by the Devil Fruit’s drawback. Which I assume, will kick in like the rest of the users: knee-deep and you’ll be immobile.”  


She stops there, although she looked like she wanted to continue, and turns to Grist, “Grist, snap out of your brooding and go get some food made. Also,” she paused, and didn’t continue until Grist looked back at her, having moved from the middle of the room to the side, where a transponder snail was located, “don’t tell Kroitel anything that happened here.”  


The threat hung darkly in the air, and I felt a chill expand through the room even as sunlight began shining once more outside. Grist challenged her gaze for only a moment before succumbing and sighing deeply before leaving the room to speak with the cook.  


The second Grist was out of sight, disappearing behind wooden doors, she turned her attention back on me.  


“You see, Kailina. I’m planning on leaving this chunk of sand in three months to go back on my on adventures. In that time I’m going to train you so hard that you’ll wish you’d actually died before meeting me. If you’re going to head out to sea and get anywhere exciting, you’re going to need that training – and train like your life depended on it, ‘cause sooner or later it will.” She paused, watching my face intently before continuing,  


“So if you’re going to quit, quit now and give up on the horizon. I will not allow you to quit halfway through, and I’m not wasting my time here if I’ve got nothing to do. Tell me, Kailina. You will feel this pain,” she nodded towards my legs, “several times over in the next three months. Each time, I will push you farther and farther until I’m satisfied. Tell me.”  


Taking a deep breath, I thought about everything that had happened. The Devil Fruit that I ate without understanding its power, the pirate in front of me, offering a chance for the adventure I had always wanted… And I could only come up with one answer.  


“Train me.”  
She didn’t move, flickering her eyes over every inch until she was satisfied. After a few moments, she smiled.  


“If you’re anything like your mother, Kailina, this’ll be fun.”


	4. Freedom

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 4: Freedom

The months passed quickly, and soon it was time for me to leave. After Kura’s arrival, Grist eventually got over my decision to leave the day Kura did. Although sometimes I guessed that his compliance stemmed from the fact that I wasn’t planning on leaving like the rest of my family: without a word to anyone. But I think during the long days spent training with Kura, Grist finally acknowledged that I at least wanted it enough to be happy for me.

And I did want it. I wanted as much power as I could get in the past three months. Enough power to ensure my adventure wouldn’t end at its beginning. Kura’s training, however grueling it was, was as she put it: _“Enough to teach you the basics… But it’s all I can teach you. The rest will have to be learned from battles both won and lost. Experience is what you need, Kaili.”_ Admittedly, experience was what I sorely lacked.

Sunlight poured over my skin and warmed it, separating me from my thoughts as my eyes opened to witness the Sun peering through my open window. Smiling, I stood up from my seated position, turning towards the full-length mirror that leaned against the wall, replacing the other two that were there previously. White-blue orbs stared back at me as I appraised myself, examining any sort of difference from when I had gazed into the mirror before. My fair skin had become sun-kissed, beneath the skin hid muscle that noticeably appeared when I raised my arms to pull tight the ponytail that held my blonde hair up. There was a light within my eyes – a spark – which wasn’t there before.

The fancy and uncomfortable clothes had been replaced with black shorts and a white dress shirt that flared out below the black and red striped bustier that was worn over it. It was a useful garment of clothing, as Kura had pointed out after a few sparing matches, as it helped keep my posture correct when wielding one of the heavy training staffs the pirate had brought with her. To top off the outfit, a short black jacket wrap was worn over the ensemble, cascading over my chest as the fabric folded left over right just below my breasts. The material of the jacket stopped an inch above my elbow, allowing the arms of the white dress shirt underneath to be visible as its length ended halfway down the forearms as the cuffs folded back onto the shirt.

The sunlight drew my eyes away from the mirror, the shimmering blue expanse lying off the sandy shores of the island captured my attention as excitement flooded my heart. Today I would be leaving, sailing the vast seas with only the horizon as my destination. A grand smile spread across my face as I sat on the soft bed I probably wouldn’t experience in a long time, pulling on black socks that went over my knees and then brown boots that reached almost that far up my legs. The height was more of a precaution in case water revealed the scars that lay beneath the skin, the darker colours were to mask the blood that seeped out when sea water made contact.

A voyage on the seas where the sea was my worst enemy.

It was daunting to think about, but I suppose the sea is the fickle companion of all sea-goers. Both pirates and marines alike.

_Knock. Knock. Knock._

“Miss Kailina, breakfast is ready.”

The rapid knocks on my bedroom door shook me out of my reverie, and I quickly crossed the room and opened the door. Peering out into the hallway, I could see Grist’s retreating form already creating considerable distance between us.

“Grist!” I called out, refusing to allow him to slip away and end up having to leave without saying my goodbye. He stopped and turned around with a gentle look as he watched me run through the hall to catch up with him. When I stood before him, we both appraised each other in the early light that streamed through the long windows of the hallway and both created and banished shadows.

His grey eyes held shadows in them, and while I knew the cause as well as the cure, I would never back down from the journey stretching out before me. I was certain in all the uncertainty that I was faced with. But the shadows in his eyes knew this, the quiet smile that curled the corners of his lips acknowledged the fact that I wouldn’t come back. Not for a while, anyway. His brow creased deeply as he chuckled to himself, the worry etched into the skin as he tried to fulfill his duty as senior butler to the Sireon household: a job that first started when Kura and my father were still young. The years had certainly treated him well, the salt and pepper hair that was slicked back and meticulously groomed still served to give him a youthful look. Seeing as how he was old enough to be my grandfather – and since I never knew my own, he filled the part quite well – the fact that he still portrayed youth spoke great lengths of his stubbornness, if nothing else.

“Miss Kailina, I believe I’ve told you countless times to not run in the house.”

His words made me shrug, and with a lighthearted grin I replied, “Well how else am I supposed to walk with you? Your ‘walking’ – if you can even call it that – is practically a light jog!” He sighed at this before gesturing at me to walk with him, which I did happily.

“Kura’s had quite the influence on you.” It was a statement, really, but it was also a question.

“Yeah, she has. In a good way, I think.”

“I can see she’s done some good, Miss Kailina… But you hardly see the bad until it’s too late.” Grist’s words silenced me as we reached the top of the stairs. He continued down the steps, but stopped short when he noticed I was not longer walking beside him, “Miss Kailina?”

“I think that... seeing the outcome of your decisions as a bad thing is something to be avoided.” Speaking slowly, I clasped my hands together as I thought about my next words, “I think that my father and Kura are similar in this regard.”

Grist watched as I started down the steps, continuing his own descent at my side as he questioned my statement, “How so?”

“They both think about their actions carefully. Sometimes bad things happen because of it, but I think that’s okay. After all, both of them are willing to deal with the consequences, no matter what they are…” I paused as we reached the bottom of the stairs, my clasped hands separating as I focused on them. Soon enough, electricity jumped from one hand to the other, my fingertips buzzing with energy as they acted as a conduit.

My training was not limited to learning how to fight, but also how to control my newfound powers. The Storm Storm fruit allowed me to create and control storms, as Kura had vaguely described, but in order to use it efficiently I would have to call an actual storm and manipulate it from there. It’s a rather powerful fruit, but when fighting indoors it becomes quite limited. Because of that weakness, Kura made sure to add even more to my training regimen. Trying to create and control aspects of a storm was more difficult than just summoning a storm cloud, believe it or not. At the end of three months I could only create small electrical discharges at close range and generate strong winds. Unfortunately wind doesn’t rely on storm clouds, so I struggled especially with creating any sort of gust.

“That’s what I want to do, Grist. To not falter in the face of the future, just as they do.” I could feel another set of eyes on me and turned to see Kura grinning wildly as she strolled up to us.

“It seems you’re starting to get better at unarmed generation, Kaili. In no time at all you’ll be generating like you got something in your hands!”

Not only was creating aspects of storms difficult, but even more so when I had no weapon in my hands. Which is precisely why Kura had me practice that solely after she finished experimenting what my power could and couldn’t do.

“Today’s a big day, Kaili. Let’s hurry and eat before we set off.”

Her words hurried us towards the dining room, where magnificently prepared meals were waiting for the three of us. While normally the butlers would eat without me, when our father left Kairius insisted that Grist joined us for every meal. That, at least, hasn’t changed. Kura and I ate quickly, Grist made sure to take his time as he always did. No conversation was held over the meal, the occasional ‘pass the salt’ from Kura and the immediate response of ‘pass the salt, **_please_** ’ from Grist quickly began and ended without dragging on as long as their bickering normally did.

“Kura, you’re returning to your crew when you leave here, right?”

The empty plate in front of me had inspired many questions I wanted to ask before I left, as there were several things I couldn’t quite get out of either Grist or the visiting pirate at the moment. But there was one eating at me: why did Kura come back? She seemed fairly happy when she reminisced about her crew, but never really said much of anything about the matter.

Whenever I asked her about my mother, she said even less. There were a few moments late at night when we both lingered after supper had been cleaned off the table. A few glasses of red liquid had been drained from her hand whenever she started speaking of her. Soft words, secret smiles, and bittersweet memories that saddened her eyes. The silver coin. It was important somehow to their (Kura and my mother’s) relationship. Kura always carried with her, and some nights it received long and loaded looks. Unspoken emotions said a lot more than her expressed ones when it came to Klarrissa Sireon.

“Yeah, that idiot captain said he would wait around for me, after all. Might as well see if he’s still where I left him.” Kura shrugged at her answer, leaving the impression that she thought that no matter what her captain chose to do she’d find him eventually.

“Hah, I’d say they’re taking it easy without me around. Hope I don’t have to whip them back into shape for too long.” She smiled widely at the thought of her crewmates, already shaking her head at whatever scene she was imagining they got themselves tangled up in.

“The Grand Line must be quite the place…”

When I first found out that Kura wasn’t the captain of her own crew, the look on my face had her laughing for days on end. But the few times that she’s spoken of her crew and their adventures in the Grand Line she always has something to laugh about.

“You thinking that’ll be your ‘horizon’, Kaili? It’s dangerous, far more dangerous than other seas. But if you’ve got a crew that’ll have your back… Well, there’s a lot waiting on that horizon.” She stood up, placing her hands on her hip as she continued, “Ahh those were the days. Back when captains of magnificent vessels lead many fearless pirates into those great and mysterious seas! Back when pirates followed their dreams with reckless abandon and the seas were full of idiots who sailed wherever the wind blew them! When the Jolly Roger flew high on the mast of nearly every ship you came across: some friendly, some… less friendly. Those were the times to be a pirate, Kaili.”

It sounded like she wanted to say more, her voice wavering on the last sentence as if it wasn’t planned, but it was more than I’ve ever gotten out of her so I didn’t ask. Grist, who had finished his meal during the exchange, spoke up.

“Enough stories of a bygone era, Kura. Miss Kailina, take this with you.” He stood up as well, ignoring the glower Kura sent him, and handed me a pouch. He allowed me to see that the pouch held an assortment of bills and coins inside of it before continuing, “200,000 Beri for your trip. I expect you to use it wisely.”

“Grist…” My heart swelled at his kindness, and I leapt from my seat to give him a long hug (which he returned quickly), whispering into his neck softly, “Thank you.”

“Ahem.”

Removing my arms from Grist after shooting a beaming smile at him, I turned my attention to Kura. She seemed to be waiting impatiently, rolling her eyes when I ‘finally’ waited for her to say what she wanted to say.

“I happen to have something for you as well.” She smiled ‘innocently’ at Grist before approaching us, “Two things, actually. They used to be your mother’s.”

My eyes widened at her words, and she pulled some sort of trinket out of her pocket. Her white-blue eyes gazed at it, her features softening momentarily before she recomposed herself and handed it to me. It was a silver coin. A metal link pierced through the foreign coin and connected the silver to a fine metal chain so that when it was worn it would lie flat against the chest.

“But, Kura, isn’t this…?”

She laughed, pulling out another silver coin and flipping it through the air before holding it up so I could see. “It’s from the same collection, Kaili, but the one your holding used to be your mother’s. I made a little addition to it,” she pointed to the chain, “as you seem to worry about unimportant things.”

Smiling at Kura’s reference to my discomfort at carrying things in my pockets, as I frequently checked them to make sure what I had placed in them hadn’t fallen out during our sparring matches, I quickly slipped the chain over my head and tucked the coin out of sight.

“I’ll treasure it, Kura.”

“Just don’t treasure it too much, Kaili. There’s plenty of other stuff to treasure out there.” Kura waved off my curious look, “Never mind. I’m sure you’ll find out eventually. The other thing your mother had was this…”

She held up a bundle of red fabric, unfurling it into a large rectangular sheet as she spoke. Unsure what to do with it, which she probably expected by the way she folded it and wrapped the fabric around my hip. The way she did so caused the fabric on my right leg to rest halfway down my thigh while the knot rested pleasantly on my hip. The excess fabric fell to the same length down my other thigh. It looked rather stylish, like having a skirt that bunched up on one side.

“Klarrissa used to wear it like this. Believe it or not, she was rather superstitious… It was her ‘lucky charm’. Don’t really know if I put much stock in it, but hey, if it works might as well use it!” Kura’s laugh rang through the room.

Laughing along with her, I was pulled into a tight hug. I couldn’t see her face, but the words she whispered to me before breaking the hug with a light slap on the shoulder told me enough.

“Your mother would’ve wished you all the luck in the world on your journey. Sometimes that still isn’t enough. _Lucky_ for you though, I taught you everything luck doesn’t cover.”

With that, it was time to leave.

Kura would be leaving later today, but she had advised me to leave in the morning. My course was charted only as far as the ocean-going restaurant named Baratie, which would mean I would arrive there around noon. After that, I would have to make my own plans. Excitement setting in once more, I tucked the pouch of money Grist had given me into my boot for safekeeping before leaving the dining room with Kura and Grist following behind me. It had been decided that I was to take Kura’s ship, as that was the one she taught me how to sail in… The one Grist had purchased for me was newer, and thus, more complicated. Kura caught on quickly, myself however… not so much.

Soon enough I was hauling myself onto the wooden deck and double checking the supplies I had loaded it up with the day before. Having enough food and water for a three day journey, I exited the cabin where I first saw Kura’s eyes glinting at me from the darkness and met with Grist and Kura, who were waiting on the sandy beaches below.

“Alright, it’s time to head out.”

They nodded silently. With the goodbyes taken care of over breakfast, I said nothing else. Raising the anchor and unfurling the sails, wind quickly caught the fabric and I was carried out onto the East Blue. Turning back, I waved brightly to the two people left on the beach.

_Shhunk!_

Confusion clouded my expression as I saw Kikoeru embedded into the wood of the cabin’s wall.

“Kailina!” Kura’s voice turned my eyes towards the beach once more, “Consider that **my** gift! I won’t free-load off of Klarrissa’s belongings. The next time I see you I’ll see if you’ve been using Kikoeru properly…” She paused, taking a deep breath in order to make sure her voice reached me, “Don’t you dare step an inch backwards, Kaili! Create your own unfaltering footsteps on the shores of unknown horizons, just as your mother did.”

**“I won’t forgive anything less, Sireon!”**

Winds blew past, speeding me over the waters. Soon Kura and Grist were small flecks on a shrinking island, but they remained on the shores until I could no longer see them. The salt in the air brought life into my lungs, the rocking of the boat comforting and rhythmic. Removing Kikoeru from the wood and tracing the groove it left behind, I then left the stern of the vessel for the bow. Not straying far from the centre of the boat, increasingly aware of the water that sloshed against the hull, my face broke out into a wide smile at what I saw.

The horizon, closing in and expanding at the same time. Clouds swirled in the sky, beckoning me to sail towards them, to explore the lands that lay beneath their shadows. My heart skipped a beat at the thought of all that could be waiting for me, on lands far different from the ones I knew and people who knew nothing about me.

While I was uncertain about what this voyage would bring, I knew one thing that it had already given me:

Freedom.

* * *

O

* * *

 

The small vessel soon disappeared from sight, but two figures still searched the seas. Both wishing they could watch over the girl’s journey more than the sliver they had been shown.

“Do you think she’ll find everything she’s looking for?” The man’s voice sounded tired as he asked his companion.

She looked at him, running her hand through her unruly hair before resting it on her neck. Exhaling the breath she hadn’t been aware she was holding, she thought about the man’s question.

She did her best to teach Kailina in the short time they had. She considered expanding the time limit, to ensure the girl would be capable on her own… But adventures that were postponed eventually faded away. Kura had seen it countless times, and while they continued with their lives that dream never faded. That need never died. Hopefully the young girl found a crew of her own – be it pirate or marine – to make up for the shortcomings she would inevitably face.

Kura laughed.

“I don’t know, Grist. But she would never have found it here, no matter how hard you tried to fulfill that ache.”

“I suppose you’re right–”

“Of course I am.”

“–her family has proven to be incorrigible when it comes to setting out on the sea. Her grandfather, mother, father, aunt, and brother have all answered the call of the winds.”

It was true enough, she supposed. Her family had never been one to sit still for too long, and Klarrissa… Well, she was the same way. Kura wondered if Grist had thought about the path she would take, but didn’t ask. She knew Kailina had her mother’s blood in her. In that way, a Jolly Roger would soon gain a dangerous ally.

“Whatever happens, she won’t be returning.”

“I’m well aware.”

They stood in silence for a moment longer, before the two made their way back inside the Sireon mansion.

“Mind making me a cup of tea before I head out?”

“What do we have here, Kura? It only took a few decades for you to not turn your nose up at the sound of ‘tea’.”

“Oh, give it a rest Grist.”

They shared a small smile before returning to the dining room. Another, simpler, goodbye starting in the antique room.


	5. Baratie, Straw Hats, and Don Krieg's Arrival!

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 5: Baratie, Straw Hats, and Don Krieg’s Arrival!

The sun had moved across the sky in its arc by the time the Baratie was in sight. From my guess, it was a little before noon. The wind had blown in my favour during the trip southward, and so I had arrived at the restaurant earlier than expected. The exact position of it had been obscured by the fog that had settled over the ocean for the past half hour, splintering the sunlight through the low clouds. Luckily it didn’t cloud my vision of the large vessel. It had an oval shape, with two masts planted on either side of the three-story building in the center of the deck. On one end, a fish-shaped thing protruded from the side of the ship, while the opposite end was crafted into a tail.

It was a unique design choice, but the thought drifted away as I sailed closer. Rolling my sail up, I took on the task of guiding my boat to the restaurant. Large ships had dropped their anchors far enough away from Baratie to allow for smaller row boats to make their way to the restaurant and drop off customers to the wooden doors that led inside.

My ship edged forwards, the waves carrying it between the two ships. Upon further inspection, one of them was a pirate ship. The Jolly Roger they flew, which they had also painted onto their main sail, was comprised of a simple design: a grinning skull and bones which wore a straw hat. As I sailed next to it, the sound of water lapping against the wooden ships seemed to only emphasize how large the vessel was in relation to mine. It towered over me, and my white-blue eyes traced the outline of the ship’s railing, somewhat hoping to catch a glimpse of the pirates through the cover of fog.

The metal chains attached to the anchor that plunged into the depths of the blue waters below clanked against the ship as the waves rocked the ship gently. The sound seemingly echoed as the ship to my other side was cradled by the ocean similarly. However, my focus on the pirate ship awarded me with movement. A man was leaning on the railing, one arm supporting his weight, the other I couldn’t see due to the angle, but as the sound of voices reached my ears I figured it was gesturing towards one of his companions.

“Man, how long have we been here already?” The voice whined, and while it had a higher pitch it was undoubtedly masculine. “If he’s going to take a year, at least I’m still around to be your captain.”

But it wasn’t the voice of the man leaning against the railing as it sounded from a place out of my eyesight. The man turned to face the voice, his arm leaving its resting place and his back was now to me. I could see what looked like green hair and a white shirt, but the fog obscured the colours even as I could see his shape clearly.

“He’ll figure something out.” The smooth baritone voice scoffed, either ignoring the other voice’s comment completely or answering it silently. Noting that it sounded close enough to be the green-haired man’s, I continued straining my ears to listen to the conversation.

“I wouldn’t mind if we stayed here a little longer. The food is delicious, and most importantly free!” A feminine voice reached my ears this time, and it held some sort of confident or smug undertone.

Staring at the back of the man’s head as I wondered if he would speak next, I could see his muscles tense suddenly before his eyes whipped around and met mine. He had dark eyes, and a scowl pulled the corner of his lips downwards as he looked at me. Whether it was because of the conversation, or merely my presence, I didn’t know. Even so, his eyes followed me until I drifted behind him. He turned his head back to its original position and continued the previous conversation as if nothing had happened.

“It’s free for _you_.”

I didn’t hear anything else. My eyes swivelled forward to watch my approach to the sea-faring restaurant, and soon I was able to tether the small ship to the Baratie and head inside with a map tucked into my jacket and the Kikoeru strapped to my back. The interior was spacious, and many of the tables were filled with patrons enjoying their food with idle chatter filling the room. Hardly any of them noted my entrance except for the few glances I received, most of the eyes that wandered my way were drawn to Kikoeru.

My fingertips idly traced the smooth texture of the weapon’s wooden shaft, reassuring myself of its comforting presence. Kura had made sure that the heavier training staff was on my body at all times, and sometimes my mind forgot that the lighter Kikoeru was strapped to me. I suppose it made me look more dangerous than having a simple staff, but I pushed the thought away as I walked up to the front desk. Apparently my countenance countered that of Kikoeru’s, as none of the customers nor the waiter said anything about bringing a weapon in.

Well, I suppose that also has more to do with the fact that the restaurant probably got a lot of unsavory types in its sea-faring career, if the pirate ship out front was any indication.

“Hello, could I get a table for one? I don’t have a reservation or anything…”

I trailed off after noticing the waiter was staring at me silently. His head was resting on his hand, which was being supported by the stand that he placed his elbows on. He rocked side to side, his black eyes staring into my white-blue ones. Uncomfortable, I shifted my weight from one foot to the other.

“Uh, can I help you with something?”

The staring continued, and I wasn’t sure if he had heard me or if he was simply ignoring me. I decided it couldn’t be the latter, as his eyes followed me when I experimentally leaned to my left. The continued eye contact was obviously not coincidental, so I examined him further. He had messy black hair which was hidden underneath a straw hat and a scar with two stitches under his left eye. He wore a three-buttoned sleeveless red vest that seemed to be a little large on him. As I reached around the small wooden stand to grab a menu from the rack located on the side of it, I could see he wore short blue trousers with fluffy looking cuffs and sandals. The white apron he wore around his waist seemed out of place with his outfit. Overall, it was an outfit similar to that I had seen many children on the neighboring island when they went outside to play in the nice weather.

Stifling a laugh at the childish choice of clothing, I held up the menu and grinned at the silent boy.

“I’ll just take a seat then!”

While I was a little uncomfortable at seating myself, a small smile remained on my face from the unusual encounter with the waiter. Spotting an empty table near the wall, I made my way towards it. Glancing back out of habit I found the straw hat’s gaze still following me. However, I quickly replaced my thoughts of the boy with that of my journey as I sat down, adjusting Kikoeru slightly to allow a more comfortable position.

With a deep sigh I pulled out the map and spread it out over the table, pushing the glasses and cutlery away to make room. The edges of the map curled up, and the objects I had previously pushed away soon became paperweights. Glancing quickly through the menu, I selected a dish that sounded appetizing and added it to the ranks of the other newly ordained paperweights.

I had enough food to last three days, so I had a lot of options as to where to go. There wasn’t much to the east of Baratie and as I came from the north going back that way didn’t seem like a good idea. That meant that I could either go west or south. The map of the East Blue was old, and didn’t have much in the way of named towns. Landforms and islands, as well as the calm belt, were clearly indicated.

Beargu Port was to the west, situated in a string of little islands that followed the coast of the Red Line.

Loguetown was southwest, and another small island was home to Aldertown – almost directly south of the Baratie.

Sighing at the lack of named locations, I turned my eyes to the north.

The Conomi Islands were north of the Baratie. Unfortunately, they were all unnamed, but my eyes easily picked out the Sireon Island, as well as the shape of Byport Island (unfortunately unnamed on the map before me) where I occasionally visited with Grist and Kairius in the past. There were several other small islands surrounded Byport which I couldn’t put names to, but the largest of the Conomi Islands were home to Cocoyashi and Gosa village. The latter of which was the hometown of Grist.

It was a difficult decision. I’d have to go to Loguetown eventually to stock up for the Grand Line, but without finding a crew first it would be pointless to travel there right away. Beargu Port and Aldertown were both a half a day’s journey away from Baratie, and from their respective islands it would be a full day’s journey to Loguetown.

Nodding to myself, I decided my course would be set for Beargu Port. Aldertown was a lone island close to the Calm Belt, if there was no one willing to take me into their crew there it would take half a day to get to another island. Beargu Port, on the other hand, was surrounded by other islands.

“Your eyes are cool!”

Distracted by my thoughts, I didn’t notice the waiter sitting across from me. He was grinning widely, as if he had figured out a great secret, his eyes closing as he leaned back in his seat and laughed. It was a different kind of laugh, a ‘shishishishi’ which reflected the wide smile that engulfed his face. It reminded me of a child’s laugh, one that is completely heartfelt and spontaneous.

“Thank you?”

The question I tried to ask subtly wasn’t answered as he balanced the chair on its back legs, rocking back and forth as he stared at me again.

“An angry monster that used to visit my village has the same eyes as you.”

“An… angry monster?”

“Yup!” He popped the ‘p’ before continuing, “She was mean.”

My head tilted to the side, wondering what I could say to that. I opened my mouth, but ended up closing it in favour of looking around the room. It was strange that no one had said anything about the waiter who had planted himself across from me, and with my inspection I found that there wasn’t a single waiter other than the boy. Rolling up the flattened map and placing it back on the inside of my jacket, I tried to steer the conversation into rational discussion.

“What’s your name?”

“Monkey D. Luffy. Nice to meet you.” He bowed his head towards me, somehow introducing himself in a way that would’ve been regarded as serious had it not been for the constant creaking of the chair rocking back and forth.

My eyes were drawn back to his straw hat as he grinned at me, a sudden thought crossing my mind.

“Mister Luffy… You wouldn’t happen to be part of the pirate crew out front, would you?”

The creaking stopped.

“Oh, so you noticed? That’s my crew. I’m gonna be king of the pirates!”

The string of apologies I had planned to say at the dismissal of died on my tongue at his grand proclamation. Our eyes locked, and a grin broke out on my face.

“King of the pirates? That sounds awesome! What is it?”

“What? You haven’t heard about it? The one who finds the One Piece is the Pirate King. The Pirate King rules the seas.” His laugh echoed throughout the room, but I hardly noticed the stares that followed.

“One Piece? What’s that?”

“You really haven’t heard about it?”

Shaking my head, I waited for the pirate to continue.

“The One Piece is the treasure that Gold Roger left at the end of the Grand Line.”

Excitement flared through me, and I found myself fidgeting restlessly in order to order to contain my glee at the discovery of an ‘end’ to the Grand Line. The Grand Line would no doubt be the horizon I wanted to see, and if what this pirate said is true, reaching this ‘One Piece’ would mark the finish line of my journey.

“Hey, chore boy! Stop sitting around and hand out hot towels to our customers!”

Turning to the voice’s source a young man dressed in a black double-breasted suit with a striped blue dress shirt and tie visible beneath the black jacket stood next to the table, staring down the straw hat pirate. From my angle it looked as if he had very long legs, and the suit fit him nicely, showing off his slim proportions. The man’s blond hair kept his left eye hidden from view, but his right eyebrow curled up into a spiral at the outer end.

He seemed to notice my eyes studying him, and as he picked up Luffy by the back of his red vest he turned his attention to me.

“Mademoiselle-” He stopped short, confusion clouding his face before he it cleared. He promptly dropped the pirate and knelt down before me, taking my hands in his, “Mademoiselle, you are the most exquisite lady I’ve had the pleasure of greeting. The sea has sent me such stunning beauty that even fabled sirens could not lead me to into the depths. For a single glance from my lady enchants the heart and would silence their bewitching songs. Might my ears be graced with the cadence of your name, so that my heart knows who hastened its rhythm?”

My face flushed with heat but I retained my composure, pulling my hands from his delicate grasp and noting his long fingers made no attempt to pull me back. Unsure of how to respond to the stranger’s compliments, I settled for a small smile.

“Thank you for your kind words, sir-“

Fortunately, I didn’t have to think about what to say next, as a booming voice interrupted my timid response.

“Sanji! Stop flirting with the customers!”

“Tch. Damn geezer.”

The man’s mutter seemed to snap him out of his flowery words and as he sighed he straightened his legs. As he lit a cigarette, I peered out behind the dandy long-legs* and saw an older looking man approach the table. He wore a white chef uniform with a white apron and a tall chef’s hat. He had short blond hair, most of which was covered by the hat, but his moustache was braided and reminded me of the arms on a clock by the way they somehow defied gravity. His every step was marked by the sound of his peg leg hitting the floor, substituting in for his lost right foot. He stroked his beard as his eyes appraised me as he got closer.

“Sanji, chore boy, go do something productive.”

The blond grumbled but soon stooped over and grabbed the back of Luffy’s red vest again, dragging the pirate along the floor behind him. However, before the pirate disappeared from my view he gave me an enthusiastic wave which I returned politely.

“You have interesting eyes, girl.”

My eyes met his and I struggled to form a smile that didn’t indicate my previous discomfort at the dandy long-legs’ advances. The growing irritation of the observations my eyes awarded me since I came in through the doors didn’t help either, and the result was a rather curt answer.

“It’s been mentioned.”

“Has it now?” He regarded me seriously before continuing, “Well, has anyone mentioned that a man around your age stopped by a few months ago? He had the very same eyes you’ve got, and a mop of white hair. ‘Silver Eyes’, as they call him, came by with a crew: a rowdy bunch. Memorable, to say the least. One of ‘em nearly blew Baratie out of the water! Damn pirates.”

My eyes widened at that information. Kairius? A pirate? There must be some sort of mistake. There _had_ to be a mistake. If Kairius was a pirate, then that would mean that he would no doubt end up facing father and he was always very clear in his contempt for the Jolly Roger. While Kairius combatted a lot of father’s opinions, to cross the line and become a pirate…

What exactly had my brother been up to?

Better yet, what had my father been up to?

“…Pirate…?”

The word left my mouth long before I had even thought to say them. It was a question asked with a trembling voice and reflected my furrowed brow. It was impossible. He had never met Kura, so how could he possibly want to be a pirate? The stories we were told since we were young were filled with bloodshed and murder. Of monsters who wore the skin of humans and waved a flag of bones to show just how much they disregarded the lives of those they killed.

Surely, this was not what Kairius had become?

…That’s what I wanted to believe. That’s what I wanted to believe with every fibre of my being: to not doubt my own brother. But there was a small corner in my mind that whispered in defiance, a thought that eroded previous thoughts with the doubt it brought in with its dangerous tide. _What if?_ People had proven time and time again that they were changeable and fickle. Kairius must have changed from the time he left, just as I had changed already. Not all changes were good. My brother was kind and brave, and did the right thing when everyone else did wrong. He was nothing like father when he left, physical resemblances were where the similarity started and ended… But what if that had changed?

What if family just left and never looked back?

“Hm… I should have a wanted poster somewhere.”

The man left, and I was alone at the table. Luckily, his words had quieted the tumultuous thoughts that threatened to drown me in their doubt. However, my heart felt sodden in the aftermath and I couldn’t find the words to straighten my slouched posture. So I said nothing, and thought nothing more of my brother or father. Instead, my eyes turned to the blue sea beyond the window panes for reassurance and comfort.

After all, I mused, my only concern was reaching the horizon now. What they do is none of my concern.

_Kreesh!!_

My attention was drawn to sound of shattering glass, finding that all the patrons where the sound originated from looking out of the windows. A crowd had soon formed by the windows, and my eyes searched the water for what had drawn their attention. A small speck on the fog-free water advanced towards the Baratie quickly, and it was unquestionably a large ship… but something was strange about it. When it sailed closer, the Jolly Roger it flew drew my eyes. The skull seemed to be a little long and had weird semi-circles on the sides of the skull. Two hourglasses were in line with the end of the crossbones. Luckily, my confusion cleared when the crowd starting calling out information.

“Don Krieg’s Pirate ship!!!”

“The hourglasses beside the skull mean that time’s run out for their enemies…!”

“What do they want?!”

However, the panic quickly faded when the ship loomed over the Baratie. While it still looked impressive in the distance, the ship was nothing more than the tattered remains of a magnificent vessel. The panic had ceased, but the crowd hung to the walls of the restaurant as they waited for the wooden doors to open as footsteps approaching the doors could be heard in the silence. However, the man who opened said doors was nothing to fear. While his stature was impressive, he was being supported by a smaller man.

“Please… food and water… I’ve got money. Lots of money…”

Confused mummers ran throughout the room, all of them getting louder as the pirate collapsed onto the ground.

“Food! Water! _Please_! The Don’s doomed if you don’t help him!”

There was a weird feeling in the air after his subordinate pleaded for help. Some kind of weight that consumed the gazes of the patrons as they looked on at the scene. Nobody was going to help. A booming laugh cleared the dense air, but it did little to resolve the tension.

“How rich! Whatta laugh! Dis bum is the dreaded Don Krieg?!” The voice came from one of the chefs who had come down the spiral stairs located at the center of the ship. The other pirate seemed to have had dealings with him before, as he pleaded once more, “This time I’ve got money! We’re customers!!”

His pleas fell on deaf ears as the cook shouted for someone to contact the navy, telling the other cooks to not feed the starving man. The crowd shouted their support for the cook, unwilling to let the pirate regain his strength simply to destroy the restaurant or attack its patrons.

“I won’t harm anyone… Feed me and I’ll leave quietly!! I’ll take leftovers or anything…”

“Don Krieg, don’t grovel! It’s beneath you!”

Still, the duo were met with an unsympathetic silence. Movement caught my eyes, and the dandy long-legs from before was making his way down the spiral staircase. Halfway down the steps he stopped and kicked the cook who had been talking in the face, continuing down the steps as the cook’s body fell over the railing and crashed into the floor.

“Here Gin, he can eat this.”

The cook made his way to Don Krieg and his lackey, placing a bowl of fried rice and vegetables as well as a glass of water on the floor in front of the weakened man. The thanks that the pirates gave him were covered up by the handfuls of food the Don scarfed down, as well as the outcries of the other cooks.

“Sanji! Don’t you know who he is?! He’s ‘Foul-Play Krieg’, tyrant of the Eastern seas! He’ll stoop to anything to win, his duplicity is legendary! Take that food away from him!”

My ears perked at the cook’s explanation of Don Krieg’s methods, which the cook went into great detail about and I stopped listening. Instead I stood from my seat, pushing in the chair, and walked through the crowd to stand near the front. While Kura had been impressed at how fast I was, the closer I am the easier it would be to protect these defenseless people if a fight broke out. Krieg’s reliance on foul play could only end poorly with so many bystanders.

I wasn’t expecting him to act so soon, though. Neither was Sanji. By the time I had reached the front of the crowd Krieg had stood up and sent him flying with the crook of his elbow. Shocked gasps rang throughout everyone present after the initial stunned silence had faded. A scream sounded, and the patrons fled the dining room in a hurry.

“This isn’t what we agreed, Don Krieg! That man saved our lives, and you swore you wouldn’t hurt-!!”

The man was cut off as Krieg gripped his shoulder and lifted him to his feet. An audible _crack_ reverberated as he cried out, a bone breaking or at least dislocating in the man’s shoulder by his captain’s own hand.

“My strength is returning.” The man looked around the restaurant, not yet relinquishing his grip, “I think I’ll take this ship now.” He dropped Gin on the ground unceremoniously after making his statement.

“So… That’s what you want…” Surprised to hear Sanji’s voice, I watched him closely as he slowly sat up, still recovering from the brunt of Don Krieg’s attack.

“You’ll get off this ship after you take care of what I tell you to do. I need a hundred rations of food and water for the men left on my ship.”

His order, of course, was not taken well by the cooks of the Baratie. However, Sanji stood and wiped the blood from his mouth before making his way for the stairs.

“Sanji! Where are you going?!”

“The kitchen, of course. We’ve got a hundred more meals to prepare.”

“WHAT?!”

All who were present cried out in disbelief. The cook was about to revive pirates that would come and attack the ship, it was hard not to think the man was crazy. His fellow cooks surrounded him, all holding pistols aimed at his head. Sanji didn’t even seem fazed by this, and after lighting another cigarette he raised his arms with his palms facing skyward.

“If you want to stop me… Fire.” The cooks glanced at each other, but none lowered their weapons, “I know they’re unredeemable villains. But my job is to feed people, not judge them or worry about what happens after they’re fed. It gets too complicated. If a man is hungry, I feed him!!”

After a few moments of silence, he spoke again, “What’s the problem? That’s a cook’s job.”

The guns lowered as Sanji hit the ground. The cook the dandy long-legs had kicked on his descent into the restaurant had punched him.

“Sanji, I know you feed the people I chase off. I’m not gonna say who’s in the right, but this time, you’re wrong! I’m not gonna let you bring this restaurant down. Not while I’m defending it!” The cook walked over to the staircase, opening one of the cupboards at its base and searched for something as he continued speaking, “He’s just one man. As long as it stays that way, he can’t beat all of us!! This is Baratie, the sea-faring restaurant! Pirates come and go every day, and we’re fully prepared to give them the customer service they need!”

He stood up after finding what he was looking for in the cupboard. Looking over his shoulder at Don Krieg he pulled off a white sheet and revealed a strangely shaped gun.

“You’ve had the main course, now here’s your iron dessert!!”

_KABOOM!!_

The gun fired a cannonball, and the crack that resounded indicated that the doors had been blown away. Smoke obscured the sight of Don Krieg, but the cooks celebrated before the damage done could be properly ascertained. My fingertips reached back and undid the clasp that held Kikoeru to my back, the wood sliding into my palm smoothly as I waited for the billowing smoke to escape the restaurant.

“That dessert was a bit heavy for my taste. Hardly a four-star meal.”

From the smoke, Don Krieg’s hulking figure was visible. Instead of the fur lined coat he had been wearing, his upper body was now encased in golden armour. The chest plate, shoulder guards, and elbow guards were all lined with fur. He didn’t have a scratch on him. It didn’t even look like a hair was out of place as he smoothed his short-cut blue-gray hair and long sideburns self-consciously.

His armour opened and revealed all kinds of gun barrels which he was pointing at the cooks still only getting glimpses through the smoke.

“Get down now!!”

Quickly running in front of the cooks, I was all that stood between them and Don Krieg’s impending barrage. With Kikoeru in my hands, I began twirling the dual glaive in a circular motion. My mind was racing, trying to grasp at Kura’s instructions and reproduce them in a real situation. Time was non-existent, the rise and fall of my chest giving no indication of the seconds that counted down to Don Krieg’s ‘surprise’ attack.

_“What you need to remember most is to calm yourself. The first few fights will have to be on instinct alone, thoughts will fail you. It’ll be sloppy, but all it needs to do is work. Planning doesn’t come until after.”_

Kura’s words soothed my rapidly beating muscle, and I took the time to loosen all of the tensed muscles in the process. My feet shifted out, and I fell into a wide stance that kept me balanced as Kikoeru I used my devil fruit powers to accumulate wind from the glaive’s motion.

_Bam Bam Bam Bam Bam Bam!_

Krieg attacked, and bullets came flying towards me.

But he was too late.

“Kikoeru Gust!”

Following the upward arc of the glaive, I stepped forward and guided Kikoeru to the left, unleashing a powerful gust that changed the path of the bullets drastically. Redirecting the momentum from the upward slash, I pivoted my body and followed with an upward slash to the right. Kikoeru followed the movements gracefully and I released another focused gust of wind to send the bullets Don Krieg had rapidly fired into the walls of the Baratie. The residual smoke was blown away by my wind, Don Krieg skidding back far enough to find himself underneath the door frame. In Kura’s training sessions I had managed to stop a bullet completely, but there had only been one bullet and she had been standing much farther away than Krieg had when she took her shot.

Kikoeru fell on my shoulder, and I glanced back to see that none of the cooks had suffered a bullet wound. A table or two had been flipped over, but I wasn’t sure if they were overturned by the cooks or my defence. I suppose that was the best possible result I could’ve gotten. Turning back to Don Krieg, he looked less than pleased about the situation.

“Little girl… No one defies me!”

He moved forward, his body tensed in anger as he discarded a fur-lined glove. “Let’s see how you match up with a diamond fist that can destroy anything! You didn’t even place a scratch on me with that little gust of yours! Wootz steel is stronger than anything you could possibly throw at me!”

Watching him carefully, I readied Kikoeru once again to protect against any sort of foul play Krieg might resort to as he continued his speech.

“I’ve never lost a battle!! I am the Don of the Pirate Armada! Know your place!”

Before he could close the gap between us, the man with the tall chef hat placed a huge bag in front of the pirate captain.

“There’s food for a hundred. Take it to your men.”

“Owner Zeff!! What’re you thinking?!” The cooks that yelled out were quickly quieted as chef Zeff continued.

“You went to the Grand Line. But ran scared, returning as defeated warriors. Let’s see if your men are as eager to fight as you are.”

Zeff turned around and walked back in the direction he came from, but as he reached me he placed a large hand on my shoulder. Heeding his silent order, I came out of the defensive stance my body had automatically sunk into when Krieg approached and rested Kikoeru on my shoulder as I watched the exchange between Zeff and Krieg.

“You’re ‘Red Foot’ Zeff! The captain-cook. So you’re alive…”

Zeff looked back at Don Krieg, his body following suit as he folded his arms and shrugged as he spoke.

“So what if I’m alive? It has nothing to do with you. I’m a chef exclusively now.”

The golden-clad man laughed, his face twisting into a smirk as he stared down Zeff, “If you put it that way, it sounds nice… but maybe you can _only_ live as a cook! Red Foot Zeff was a master of deadly kicks who never used his hands in battle. His kick could smash bedrock and leave footprints in steel. They say you died at sea, and you might as well have. Your ‘Red Foot’ days were over the moment you lost that precious leg!”

Zeff was unfazed by Krieg’s speech, waiting for him to get to the point. The cooks that had worked on the Baratie seemed to be shocked at the knowledge, but as my eyes quickly scanned all the faces of the cooks, only one seemed as unfazed as Zeff’s.

The dandy long-legs himself, Sanji.

“You once sailed to the Grand Line and came back unscathed. Give me your logbook! The one that you recorded that year long voyage!”

Luffy spoke up, eagerly looking to confirm Don Krieg’s claims. Zeff nodded at him before responding to Krieg’s demand, “That logbook is the pride of the crew that sailed with me. I won’t give it to the likes of you!!”

The Don scowled at his answer, declaring his own: “Then I’ll take it from you! The only thing I lacked on the Grand Line was knowledge! I had everything else I needed, I just didn’t know enough! So I’ll take that log and this ship-!”

Krieg’s words caused an uproar. The cooks refused to let Krieg take their ship – the only place that took in the outcasts when no one else did. The only thing they had in the entire world. My grip tightened on Kikoeru, keeping one eye on the enraged cooks and another on the irritated Don Krieg. They were obviously no match for the behemoth, the lobster cannon that had been fired at him earlier seemed to be the best weapon they had, and it didn’t even leave a scratch.

If the cooks started anything, it would be difficult to keep them out of harm’s way… They seemed like a tough bunch, but where should I draw the line with overstepping the role of bystander? How could I tell them not to fight a tyrant that was going to take what they had? Only if I planned on fighting him myself, I suppose…

Did I plan on fighting him?

“…Capture the One Piece and rule over this Great Age of Pirates!”

Krieg’s droning voice tuned me back into the conversation with the mention of the One Piece. My eyes drifted over to the red-vested pirate and I wasn’t entirely surprised to see him walking up to Don Krieg.

“Hold it!” He pointed at Krieg and placed a hand on his hip, “I’m the one who’s gonna be King of the Pirates!”

“Stay outta this, chore boy! He’ll murder ya!”

The cook’s words seemed to only excite the straw hat, a grin sprouting across his face, quickly replacing the serious look he had before.

“I can’t back off on this!”

Krieg didn’t look too happy about Luffy’s proclamation. His deep voice rang with anger as he scolded the boy, “This isn’t a game. Don’t you want to take that back?”

“Of course not. I’ll conquer the Grand Line. I was only stating the facts.”

I could practically hear Krieg’s annoyed growl from here. I would’ve stopped listening to the elongated conversation had it not been for the high-pitched whining voice coming from the staircase, “Can’t we just go back to the ship now?”

“Quiet. Stay out of this.” A deep voice responded before speaking, “Time to fight, Luffy? I’ll lend a hand.”

I turned to look at the newcomers just as everyone else in the room did. The man I could see earlier – the owner of the deeper voice – did in fact have green cropped hair. He had lightly tanned skin and wore a green haramaki over a plain white shirt. Black trousers and boots adorned the lower half of his body. Three swords were carried by his right hip, two of them were black, but he had drawn the only white slightly from its scabbard as he looked down at Luffy. Three identical golden earrings hung from his left earlobe and some black fabric was tied on his left arm.

The other voice had to belong to the young man next to the swordsman. He had medium-length black woolly hair and a very long nose. He wore an olive green bandana, keeping his hair out of his eyes, and a blue and white striped armband on his left arm. A white sash was tied around the brown overalls he wore with no shirt underneath and carried a large yellow satchel with him.

He looked… comically scared.

“Zoro, Usopp? You stopped by? Just watch from there, I can handle this.”

The swordsman sheathed his sword, looking slightly disappointed at his captain’s words while his companion couldn’t look more relieved as he stuttered out a response, “Y-yeah? T-too bad, but if you say so, what can we do…” He was promptly silenced with a jab from the green haired man. The complaints he undoubtedly spouted were too quiet for me to hear, but the swordsman response travelled well.

“Shut up, just be quiet.”

For a second his eyes met mine appraisingly before flitting back to his captain. My own gaze followed suit. Luffy had returned his attention to Don Krieg, who laughed loudly at him, “That’s your crew? Pretty thin, ain’t it?”

“What’re you saying? I’ve got two more!”

“Hey! You counted me, didn’t you?”

Sanji’s objection to Luffy’s numbers almost had me falling over from the simpleton that stood in front of the golden pirate. Only four members in his crew and he’s butting heads with a captain who has a hundred men still alive on his ship. While I couldn’t help but question his logic, I also found myself interested in just how strong this pirate crew actually was. I had a feeling that one way or another, there was a huge gap of power between the two captains.

Kikoeru thrummed in my hands as I imagined seeing the battle between them, but the moment was soon cut short when the long nosed pirate exclaimed some vital information I had missed out on.

“Krieg’s armada was destroyed in just seven days?! That’s fifty ships in one week!!”

Krieg seemed to grow tired of the dialogue he was having with the Baratie crew, and threw the bag Zeff had given him over his shoulder and wandered out the door. He shouted a threat over his shoulder:

“Anyone who doesn’t want to die better be gone when I return! All I want is the log and the ship! Everything else will be buried at sea.”

With that, Krieg was gone and we were all left with a choice.

Stay and fight, or flee.

 

* * *

  ***PLEASE NOTE***

* * *

  **Dandy long-legs** : this refers to the colloquial name for Opiliones (order of arachnids), Pholcidae (family of arachnids) and the Crane fly (insect). As Sanji appears to dislike spiders and insects, I thought the nickname was pretty ironic.


	6. 'Hawk-Eye' Mihawk Appears!

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 6: ‘Hawk-Eye’ Mihawk Appears!

“I’m sorry, Sanji.”

Ah, right. Don Krieg’s subordinate was still inside the restaurant, holding his injured shoulder as he managed to get to his feet. He had short and scruffy black hair mostly covered by a grey and blue striped headband. A mustache and beard lightly covered his skin, and he had two spherical red earrings on each ear. His unzipped white jacket had two red sea-serpents facing each other, their mouths open to the green shirt he wore beneath.

His most notable feature, however, was the dark circles under his eyes where lack of sleep had discoloured the skin.

Sanji stood up and walked over to an overturned table close to the broken doors and used his foot to flip it over, sitting down on it and lighting a cigarette before speaking, “Gin, as a cook I consider it my duty to feed the hungry. But soon I’ll be facing plunderers with full stomachs. So if I beat your crewmates to death, don’t complain. If they try to take over this ship I’ll slaughter them without mercy, and that goes for you, too.”

“First you save ‘em, then you kill ‘em? You realize that you’re the one that started this mess, right?”

“Sanji, you want to destroy this restaurant, don’t you?!”

“I didn’t think you’d go this far to become the head chef, Sanji!!”

“We should kick _you_ out along with the pirates!”

“Shut up, you eggplants!!”

The cooks fell silent after Zeff’s outburst. Everyone in the room was waiting to hear what the owner of the Baratie had to say, myself included.

“Each cook at this restaurant acted as they felt was right. For some of you, this meant not feeding Don Krieg or his lackey. But have any of you ever really been hungry before? Have you felt what it’s like to be on the brink of starvation?! To know that agony? If you’re going to keep moaning about a man’s actions to rid another of this hardship, then just head out the back door!”

My eyes drifted back to the dandy long-legs, regarding him silently as the air in the room became heavier. The blond was staring out of the restaurant, looking towards Don Krieg’s ship as a means to avoid looking at his fellow cooks. Perhaps he had once faced starvation, and now took it upon himself to rid others of it. Subconsciously my foot lifted and ran down the back of my leg before my toes tapped the floor.

Since Kura came, I noticed myself thinking more selfishly about my future. It seemed to be the correct mindset for my dream – and I still believe that to be true. However, just because I’m going to be selfish with my time from now on doesn’t mean I shouldn’t try and help those I can afford to. A small smile spread across myself as I tried to contain a chuckle that threatened to spill and disrupt the contemplative atmosphere. It sounded egotistical and perhaps more harsh and indifferent than I had intended it to be, but at least it was true. No matter what I come across on these unknown waters, I will _always_ do what I can to see more horizons. At this moment it doesn’t matter if I become selfish or indifferent to the pain of others.

I _promised_ myself I would reach new horizons during my training with Kura. Anything less would be unacceptable. Everything else becomes insignificant as long as I can see all the horizons this life has to offer. After all, I have no intentions on going back on my word. Even if I had to break a seemingly long-held tradition of my family.

_I will never fail to keep my promises._

“I’ll stay and fight.”

“I’ll stay too! This is the restaurant where I work!”

“This restaurant is our home!”

“Yeah! We’ve got nowhere else to go!”

“There’s no way we’re gonna sit back and let Krieg do whatever he wants with the Baratie!”

The tension in the room dissipated with the outcries of the cooks. Their voices easing the discontent and pumping themselves up for a battle with the Krieg pirates. But strangely a weird sense of worry still plagued my mind. The feeling set my lips into a tight line and furrowed my brow as I searched my mind for its cause. However, I could find none. My eyes then began to wander around the restaurant, my arms folding themselves over my stomach after Kikoeru was returned to the halter on my back.

My scrutinizing gaze fell on the bullet holes that remained from Krieg’s attack, and the firm line my lips created curled downwards as I scowled at how scattered the holes were. Instead of a small ring where most of the bullets had flown, there was no rhyme or reason to how far the bullet holes seemed to orbit one another as they embedded themselves in a random pattern.

There was no way such sloppy work could be considered strength on the Grand Line. Even in the East Blue, the weakest sea, I felt that there were some out there who could do a far better job than the scattershot that was merely a testament to how incomplete my training really was. Kura had been sorely right, more than I had thought at first. Experience was something I had to gain rapidly. It was something I couldn’t shy away from. I needed any and all opportunities to get stronger.

“Just one man… How could one man destroy a fleet of fifty ships?”

My head whipped back towards Krieg’s subordinate as he spoke those words. He was clutching his head tightly with one hand, fear- no… terror etched into his face as he no doubt recalled the events that brought down Don Krieg’s armada.

“What?!”

“Impossible!!”

“That can’t be true…”

“By one man?”

“The Grand Line is insane!!”

Shock spread throughout the room, but they soon quieted themselves as they listened to Gin continue.

“A hawk-eyed man appeared and sank ships one after another… If that storm didn’t come out of nowhere the flagship would’ve joined its fleet! I can’t believe it was real! That man had eyes that could kill with a glance!!”

“Wha…?!”

My eyes darted over to Luffy’s crew, the exclamation coming from the swordsman as recognition dawned on his face.

“Eh? You know him, Zoro?”

“…Yeah. He’s the man I’m looking for.”

Luckily, chef Zeff elaborated for the rest of the clueless audience.

“It had to be Hawk-Eye. Maybe you interrupted his nap. After all, that’s the kind of place the Grand Line is.”

Excitement coursed through my being at Zeff’s words and I once again cemented my decision of heading to the Grand Line. However, the unease that shadowed the excitement remained long after the latter left my system. If people like this Hawk-Eye were out on the Grand Line – people who could destroy fifty ships easily – then I could only imagine how strong Kura must be, who’s lived on the Grand Line for most of her life. The crew that Kura sailed with seemed to be held in high regard, so they might be just as strong as Kura… and her captain must be even stronger than that!

While the apprehension never faded, anticipation crept into the feelings that held themselves close to my heart.

If only strong people survived the Grand Line: a place anything could happen… Then maybe that would be an accurate way to measure my strength.

“Woo-Hoo! I can’t wait!! A place where anything can happen? That’s how it should be!!”

The Straw Hat captain was unable to contain his excitement as a large grin found its way onto his face as he pumped himself up at the news. It was getting increasingly difficult not to smile along with him. His crewmate, the one with the long nose, seemed to think differently.

“For once, think of the Grand Line as a dangerous place!!”

“At least my goal is completely narrowed down to the Grand Line.” The swordsman backed away from the railing to lean against the pillar that the spiral staircase wrapped around, “That’s where I’ll find Hawk-Eyes.”

“Idiots. You’ll be killed as soon as you get there.”

Sanji’s voice added to the Straw Hats’ conversation, sending them a pointed look as he did so.

“Yeah, but don’t insult us. The day I decided to be the world’s greatest swordsman, I decided to devote my life to it. Nobody calls me an idiot but me.”

“Me too, me too!”

“As a great warrior of the sea, I must agree.”

Sanji didn’t say anything else, but his back hunched slightly as if he was shrugging.

“Ah, that’s right.” Zeff spoke again, drawing my attention to him as he turned to me and closed the gap between us, “I only managed to find the wanted poster for this one.”

He handed me a rolled up paper before folding his arms across his chest proudly, waiting for me to look at it. The paper felt old, and as soon as I had unrolled it the corners curled up. It seemed as if it had been rolled and unrolled in a small amount of time. Glancing up at the chef’s expectant gaze quickly before letting my gaze drop to the picture of a young woman.

Instead of a shaky and badly taken photograph as I had expected, it was one where she stood posed for the camera. She was a well-endowed young woman who had her long blonde locks smoothed back into a loose bun, with two perfectly curled strands framing her face. Sharp garnet eyes peered out at me from her wanted poster and a faint smirk splayed across her lips. Her confidence radiated from every ounce of her figure and the photograph failed to contain it.

Her outfit consisted mostly of red hues of a satin or silk-like fabric with purple and golden accents which clung to her curves. The dress seemed both modest and sensual at the same time, spreading out from her hips down but ensuring that her femininity showed with the emphasis being on the upper body. She had a fair complexion, one that almost didn’t suit the strong sunlight that shone down on her as she stood in front of what looked to be a cooking festival or something to that effect.

She didn’t seem like a pirate to have a bounty as high as 70,000,000 Beri, but the numbers printed on the poster didn’t change no matter how long I stared. Her name was printed in big emboldened letters, under the ‘dead or alive’: Acaste Caspian, the woman who had joined my brother’s crew.

“Who is she?”

My eyes looked back up at the braided mustached man, searching his face for any information I could get on the woman.

“Oh? You’ve never heard of her before?” He watched me shake my head wordlessly before speaking again, “Well, you see, Acaste Caspian is well-known in the cooking world. She’s one of the best cooks in the world. The dishes she makes are like nothing else, and many have tried and failed to have her work in their restaurant after she became a food critic. Although, I believe she has done some critiquing in other fields as well. She came by with Silver Eyes and enjoyed the food enough to repay the favour.”

“Yeah, Mademoiselle Caspian cooked some damn good food for us that night.” Sanji had walked over to us after hearing the conversation we were having. He plucked the wanted poster from my hands and gazed at the woman while he continued, “But, she seems to be quite the acquired taste. While some could appreciate what a true gem of a woman she is, I don’t think a lot of people bothered to in the first place.”

He placed the wanted poster back in my hands as he pulled the cigarette from his mouth and slowly blew smoke up into the air.

“Well, that’s only a hunch. She seemed to be happy with the crew she was travelling with…”

My eyes fell to the picture once more. The small smirk on her face still remained, almost goading whoever looked at her to witness that she was superior. Her garnet eyes did the same, looking straight into the camera proudly and silently judging the photographer at the time. Above her head a banner fell into the shot unintentionally. Squinting at the words that were painted onto it I could make out the caption: _Acaste Caspian – the critic to impress at Loguetown’s annual..._ the rest of the words disappeared out of frame.

It seemed that the picture had been taken as part of a news story or something...

Pushing the woman from my mind I rolled the poster back up and held it out to chef Zeff. He waved it off, chuckling as he spoke, “No, no. Keep it. I have a feeling it’ll do you more good than sitting in a corner and collecting dust here. Think of it as thanks for keeping these eggplants from becoming Swiss cheese.”

“Speaking of which, how _did_ you change the path of the bullets like that?”

The smooth baritone voice of the swordsman interrupted my plan to give back the poster, so I placed it in my jacket alongside the map before I turned my attention to the green-haired man. He and the long nose had made their way down the stairs and were joined by Luffy as they completed the semi-circle that had formed around me. Biting my lip, my eyes swept across all of them from left to right as I tried to think of what answer I should give.

Long nose, swordsman, Luffy, Zeff, and Sanji… Not to mention some of the other cooks who had become interested in the conversation while others had left to prepare the Baratie for battle, moving tables away from the broken doors which led out to Krieg’s flagship.

Kura said that any and all misdirection was a good idea: the longer you can keep your enemies guessing what your capabilities were, the longer you had to take them down.

All of these people were strangers, but would they one day be my enemies? Would I one day come across Luffy and his crew in battle? Devil Fruits had a major weakness, even more so in my case. As it stood, I wasn’t too confident in my fighting abilities. Having people know such a major obstacle that could render me powerless in just a few seconds…

My thoughts whirled, and I could see the swordsman carefully note the silence that had settled in after he asked the question. My foot ran down the back of my leg again, tapping the ground twice when it fell to the ground.

Kikoeru hummed against my back.

“My weapon’s quite special, you know.” My fingertips traced a line down the staff of the dual glaive, thanking it for the idea, “It was a gift acquired from an island on the Grand Line, and the villagers there could imbue metal with special properties.”

It was true enough, I guess. An old children’s story about magic blacksmiths that could give weapons unimaginable power – the perfect weapon for a hero to get on his quest to slay the evil monsters of the sea. Who knows, it could actually be an island on the Grand Line.

But the people in front of me had never been to the Grand Line. The one who had might’ve not come across the island on the largely unknown seas.

“Wait… Isn’t that…?” Long nose had his hand under his chin, his brow creased as he spoke. Concern thundered through me as I wondered if he had heard story before, but I managed to keep my face neutral.

“Wow! That’s so cool!”

Luffy’s eyes lit up as he looked over my shoulder and at Kikoeru, a wide grin on his face. To be honest, it was a little hard picturing Luffy as a future enemy or even as a captain for that matter. His grin was just too innocent and child-like.

“So, Luffy, this is your crew then?”

He beamed again at the question and nodded enthusiastically before stepping behind his crewmates, patting them on the back as he introduced them to me.

“This is Usopp, our sniper!” Usopp stumbled from Luffy hitting him on the back, but quickly recovered and laughed loudly while puffing out his chest. He didn’t seem to remember the story, and after Luffy had hit him out of his thoughts, it looked like he wasn’t thinking about it anymore. Quickly noting that he was around the same height as me, I turned my eyes to the swordsman who was still looking at me with his serious onyx eyes.

“And this is Zoro, he uses three swords!” Zoro, unlike Usopp, wasn’t fazed by his captain’s pat on the back and continued scrutinizing me. While uncomfortable under his accusatory stare, I held his gaze evenly. It was different from when I had examined Luffy, Sanji, or the others. We were both trying to gage each other’s strength, and see how we matched up.

My eyes broke away from his first, glancing down to the three swords that hung by his side. Two of his swords did not yet have an energy to them, still just cold metal vessels waiting to be filled. But the last one was different compared to the others, it was strong and refined, yet held a calming quality that masked its strength. It reminded me of a river: a calm surface that failed to indicate the dangerous current beneath. My eyes were drawn back up to his again, and in the onyx hues of his irises I could feel the same danger swirling within.

The sword seemed to be a very nice fit for the swordsman.

“Our navigator, Nami, is still on the Going Merry… But you’ve met our cook already!”

“I’m not your cook, straw-brain.”

The banter between the two broke off the staring competition Zoro had won, but my eyes didn’t focus on them yet. Instead, they drifted towards the window again. Something was out there, creeping closer to the restaurant. It wasn’t a storm, but it was something just as powerful.

**“Ahrooooooo!”**

A wolf howl cut out any further chatter as the cooks geared up for battle, all wandering away from the group that had formed around us. Zeff and Sanji joined them after the howl ended, Luffy, Zoro, and a shaking Usopp following soon after.

Luffy paused, looking back at me before asking me a question I had already answered in my mind.

“Are you gonna fight?”

Glancing quickly at the bullets still embedded in the ship’s walls, I met Luffy’s curious stare as I removed Kikoeru from its harness and rested it on my shoulder.

“Of course. How else will Kikoeru and I get stronger?”

Luffy broke out into a laugh and continued walking to the crowd of cooks that had gathered in front of the spiral staircase. I ran my foot down my leg again as a way to calm my beating heart and racing mind before joining them. Staring at the giant wreck through the broken doors, we waited for the pirates to attack. The feeling of something dangerous seeped into my heart again.

_Krasssssh!_

The flagship was sinking, the water rushing into the hull as it seemed to be cut in thirds. Shock rippled through the crowd at the sight. The wood of the massive ship groaned, a dying call to its crew before it slowly plunged into the sea. The Baratie jerked, riding the massive wave caused by the galleon and sending some cooks to the floor. A second passed before chaos broke out. The cooks ran around following chef Zeff’s directions to save the Baratie while the Straw Hats ran to the other door to check on their navigator and ship.

I ran in the opposite direction, through the broken doors and stood in awe of the wooden wreckage that floated just off from the Baratie. The dangerous feeling was coming from the waters, somewhere in the remains of the ship was power which I had never felt before. Some cooks had followed me out, and were just as shocked as I was.

“What was that?”

“Maybe the ammunition on the ship exploded?”

Looking over the damage dealt to the ship, I could only see clean cuts through the wood, the only ragged splinters happened where the strain from the damage caused the mast and a few other wooden constructions to crack off.

Stunned by the revelation, I numbly replied to the cook’s comment, “Those cuts are clean, an explosion couldn’t have caused that…”

It… almost looked like the ship had been cut.

But that wasn’t possible, was it?

_The Grand Line… A place where anything could happen…_

Did Hawk-Eye follow Don Krieg to the East Blue from the Grand Line? Just for disturbing a nap? Although I wanted to dispute that thought, my eyes came across a small ship with a single man sitting leisurely on it. While he was too far away to see any detail, I traced his form and saw a large sword strapped to his back. The metal of it hummed loudly in my ears, shaking me down to my core.

It was the source of all the unease I had felt, the energy of a thunderstorm stored in the large blade. Black clouds that darkened the night, thunderous rage and lightning itself emanated from that blade. It was a powerful work of metal that didn’t falter after tearing through ship after ship, just as a storm easily dismantled unprepared fleets.

And the Hawk-Eye man commanded its rage.

“The devil who sank our ships!! He’s here!!”

The cry rang out from the wreckage, alerting everyone to the presence of the man.

“That’s the one who blasted Krieg’s ship?”

“Single-handedly? He’s just a human…”

The cooks mumbled to themselves, unsure if they should believe that a lone man could destroy so much when faced with him.

“He’s a swordsman. The sword on his back… It’s… terribly powerful. He must be a highly trained master if that sword bends to his will so easily.” The words slipped out before I could stop them, and I leaned over the railing to try and get a closer look at his blade before I was pulled back by the large hands of chef Zeff.

“Yes, ‘Hawk-Eye’ Mihawk is a master swordsman. But he’s more than that. He stands above all the other masters as the strongest swordsman in the world!”

Looking back at Zeff, I could see a scowl spreading across his face. He certainly wasn’t pleased that a master swordsman was at his doorstep. But apparently that fact didn’t stop one of Krieg’s pirates from yelling at him.

“Why are you following us and destroying our ships?!”

“Just killing time.”

His nonchalant answer didn’t sit right with the pirate, and in his anger he fired two bullets at the master swordsman. His movements were effortless in guiding the large black sword through the air, in an instant the blade was where it needed to be in order to redirect the bullets that had been fired.

It was beautiful. The way the sword and master trusted in one another to the point where when they moved, they moved together. Mihawk had made his sword a true and unfiltered extension of the body.

“Shooting at him is useless.” I blinked, unsure how Zoro had managed to get onto the wreckage behind the pirate that had fired at Hawk-Eye, but ignored that thought for now, “He gently changed the course of the bullets using his sword.”

He walked up to Hawk-Eye, his eyes not even acknowledging anyone other than the greatest swordsman, “I’ve never seen a sword move like that before.”

“Without subtlety, a sword is but an iron bar. There is no strength in swordplay based only on force.” The man didn’t look at Zoro as they spoke, keeping his eyes forward as if he found the whole thing rather boring. Both the slicing of the ship as well as the conversation.

“You split this galleon with that sword?”

“That’s right.”

“I see. You’re the strongest. I went out to sea to meet you.”

“What’s your goal?”

“To become the strongest!”

Zoro removed the fabric from his arm and tied the bandana around his head, covering much of his green hair. He had a grin on his face and a dangerous look in his eyes. This was the undercurrent of the calm stream. While I could sense the shift that came with his declaration, it was still not enough to overpower Hawk-Eye. The white sword was thrumming with the murderous intent of the swordsman, spurred on by the rush of facing a strong opponent. Zoro drew the sword that was calling him.

 “Looking for a way to kill time? Fight me.”

Mihawk seemed to sense this change as well, smirking as he shifted in his seat. He said nothing, but his sword had responded to the challenge posed by Zoro’s.

“The three sword style?! That’s Roronoa Zoro the pirate hunter!”

Both the Krieg pirates and the Baratie cook were surprised at the exclamation from one of the pirates. But the two of them couldn’t hear either side. The gap of power between the two was obvious, and yet Zoro still wanted to fight him? Did he not realize? Or did he just not care?

“Pathetic weakling,” Mihawk stood from his seat before landing on the same wreckage Zoro was standing on and crossing his arms over his chest, the jump was almost too quick to see, “If you’re a competent swordsman you don’t need to cross swords to know that I far surpass your puny skills.”

He was a tall man with black hair that was covered by a wide-brimmed hat with a large plume. His short beard, mustache, and sideburns all pointed upwards. It was hard to pull my eyes away from his yellow eyes, as they seemed to capture my gaze with their intensity. The large black sword hung from his back, attached somehow to his long, open black coat where his well-trained muscles showed underneath. The red flower-patterned sleeves and collar did little to combat his intimidating stature.

Around his neck hung a golden cross-shaped necklace, and while I could sense that it held a dagger the overpowering essence of the black sword shielded the blade’s spirit from me.

“Does the courage to point your blade at me come from your confidence or ignorance?”

“It comes from ambition and a promise to a dear friend!”

Zoro placed the white sword in his mouth while drawing the other two from their scabbards. However, Mihawk remained unimpressed by Zoro’s three sword style and pulled the dagger from his neck. As he unsheathed the small blade, I could feel it was just as in tune with Mihawk as the black sword was: just an extension of his body. When a weapon was just an extension of a person’s body, that’s when it becomes the most dangerous… And Zoro wasn’t at that point yet.

“I’m not a fool who hunts rabbits with a cannon. You may have a reputation, but the East Blue is the tamest sea. It’s about time you learned how big the world is.” He paused, his face turning regretful as he continued, “Unfortunately, I don’t carry a smaller knife than this.”

“Take it easy with the bravado! You’d better not regret it when I kill you!” He started running towards Hawk-Eye, swords ready for the first attack, “Onigiri!!”

However, all three of his swords were stopped by the small blade of Hawk-Eye Mihawk. There had been no unnecessary movement in his block, he simply stood there and held back the pirate hunter’s attack as if it was a breeze in the wind.

“Zoro?!”

“Big Bro’s Onigiri was stopped!?”

“But that move never fails!!”

Looking to my right, I could see Luffy watching the fight along with two other people who were leaning over the railing in shock at Mihawk’s counter. I wondered what had happened with their ship, seeing as the two men seemed to be acquainted with Luffy but my attention was brought back to the fight when they shouted again, “Brother Zoro! Don’t let him beat you!”

Zoro had been knocked to the ground, but quickly recovered and attacked with a flurry of strikes. His attacks were fast paced and allowed little time between one sword’s attack and another, while not all slashes were blocked by Mihawk they seemed to allow little time for a counter attack. While he obviously had a lot of skill and training with his swordsmanship, Mihawk outclassed him with his subtle movements and deflections.

It seemed as if Mihawk was playing with him.

As the fight dragged on, the sword Zoro had put in his mouth seemed to be feeding off of something. I could sense its energy flare after every strike, determination driving it forwards and creating impacts that had enough force to make Mihawk take an unplanned half-step backwards.

Unfortunately, Zoro seemed to tire quickly when just going on the attack, and Mihawk easily shoved him away.

“You’re a weakling…”

At those words the two men with Luffy attempted to jump in, but Luffy pulled them back with his teeth firmly clenched and his eyes following Zoro, “Stop! Stay out of it, Yosaku and Johnny!! Control yourselves!”

“Yet the ferocity your swordplay has… What drives you? What do you bear on your shoulders? What do you desire once you’ve obtained power, weak one?”

Zoro said nothing to his questions, and instead prepared himself for another attack, “Tiger… Hunt!”

The attack never made it to Mihawk, however, as he made his first attack with the dagger – piercing Zoro’s chest easily. Mostly because Zoro didn’t step an inch backwards. They were frozen in the moment, Mihawk just centimeters away from piercing Zoro’s heart while Zoro just stares him down.

My heart thudded in my ears as I tried to hear what the world’s greatest swordsman would say to this blatant display of both courage and stupidity.

“Are you just going to let me pierce your heart? Why aren’t you withdrawing?”

“I can’t. If I retreat even one step… I feel like those various important things such as pledges and promises… my ambition… everything I care about… will be shattered and I won’t be able to come back to this point.”

“Yes. That’s defeat.”

“Then, all the more reason I can’t withdraw…”

“Even if it means death?”

“I’d rather die than be defeated.”

Mihawk stepped back, pulling out his dagger in the face of such a strong will and sheathing it.

“Boy, speak your name.”

The grin was back on his face, and his sword sang thunderous melodies in my ears at the swordsman’s acknowledgement as Zoro prepared for another, final attack. Through deep breaths he spoke his name, “Roronoa Zoro.”

“I’ll remember it. It’s been a while since I’ve met someone like you, brave one.” Mihawk reached back and grasped the black sword after placing the necklace back around his neck, “I will honour the swordsman’s code and send you to your death with this black blade – the finest in the world.”

“I appreciate it.”

The air grew tense, the black sword gleamed in the light of the clear day. Luffy’s hands clenched the railing hard enough for the wood to creak loudly, but the fact was quickly forgotten in the face of the duel. My grip tightened on Kikoeru, and I felt it hum through every inch of my body as it agreed to my silent wish.

I want to fight like he is one day.

At first, I thought it was foolish of him to fight the strongest in the world as he is now… But throughout the fight his sword is telling me different. He lives for fighting strong opponents, he lives for fighting in general. As long as he can fight, he will never turn down the opportunity to no matter how different their strengths are. The scariest thing, however, is that even from the start of the duel to the end of it he seems to have already improved. His sword resonating off of his will and wanting to win just as badly as the wielder did, allowing for such an increase in ability…

I want to fight like him, and Kikoeru agreed.

“Three thousand worlds!!”

The last clash between the swordsmen ended with the shattering of Zoro’s two swords and a shallow cut across his chest. The white sword had refused, and through its unbending will that mirrored its wielder it survived the attack. Zoro sheathed the remaining sword as Mihawk pivoted to strike again, yet halted when Zoro stood up and faced him. His arms were held away from his body, his hand clenching his sword tightly as he waited for Mihawk’s strike.

“What are you…?”

“Scars on the back are a swordsman’s shame.”

Mihawk grinned, “Magnificent.”

Just before the metal ripped his skin, the blade echoed the order Mihawk gave it clearly:

_Give him a scar to be proud of. He is strong enough to survive._

The blade did just that, its aura activating and creating a barely visible purple trail that shadowed its path as it fulfilled its wielder’s wishes. Zoro fell into the water, losing his grip on his sword.

“ZORO!”

“Zoro!!”

“Big brother!!”

The voices of Luffy, Usopp and the two men cried out for the swordsman. The two men dove into the water, and looking around I could see Usopp closing in with a small boat.

“Damn you!”

Luffy reeled back and shot out his arm, which stretched and stretched until it had reached the wreckage and grabbed ahold of a broken railing. He then flew out over the water as his arm retracted, hauling him towards the wreckage. Surprise rippled through the cooks, and I slammed my hands down onto the railing in shock.

Luffy had the power of a Devil Fruit???


	7. Don Krieg's Assault

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 7: Don Krieg’s Assault

The straw hat flew into the wreckage as Mihawk idly sidestepped him, planting his head firmly into the deck of the destroyed Galleon. My fingers tightened their grip on the wooden railing at the sound of his impact.

“The young swordsman’s crewmate… You did well to let him fight his own battle to its end.”

Mihawk watched as Luffy pulled his head out of the deck after a few pulls, the force of which caused Luffy to fall onto his back. My attention was pulled away from the scene as I saw a straw hat fluttering downwards in front of me. Glancing back at Luffy, who had gotten up and was now facing the master swordsman, I confirmed that his straw hat was missing from its place atop his head. Quickly reaching out over the railing, my fingertips reached the captain’s hat, but not enough to pull it in. My stomach pressed against the railing, one hand securing my balance while I stretched my arm as far as I could as Kikoeru slumped against the wooden barrier alongside me. It was just enough. My fingers clenched the rim of the straw hat between them, and I released a relieved sigh as I pulled myself back over the railing with the hat in tow.

“Don’t worry. I didn’t kill that swordsman.”

My eyes snapped back towards Mihawk before drifting into the sea where Zoro was being supported by the two men who had dived into the water earlier. Sure enough, a loud gasp came from the green haired swordsman as he spat blood from his mouth.

“Zoro!”

The men swam him towards Usopp who had brought his small boat closer to the wreckage and they all worked on getting him out of the water.

“My name is Dracule Mihawk, Roronoa Zoro. It is still too early for you to die.” Having successfully pulled Zoro on board, Usopp and the two men were now working on bandaging him up as Mihawk continued speaking to Zoro, “Discover yourself. See the world. Grow strong. However long it may take, I shall await you at the top. Surpass this sword, Roronoa Zoro!”

There was no response from the green haired swordsman. However, the sword that refused to break did. It burned with its will, pledging to best Mihawk’s black sword as its resolve grew stronger and stronger. The feeling of determination from the blade was stronger than any I had ever felt before, and I felt unsettled by its growing ambition.

But the black blade of Mihawk refused to acknowledge the sword’s determination.

“Swordsman!” The words escaped my throat before I could quell them, “Roronoa Zoro! Pick up your sword!”

I could feel the stares of everyone penetrating my skin, yet I ignored them. This was the perfect time to cement the willpower of the sword, to make it grow even stronger. The only one who could do that right now was its wielder. And I refused to let Mihawk and his blade sail away before said growth could be achieved.

Not when the sword called out its determination in such a way that its words rang deep within my heart.

_I will be the strongest!_

“Roronoa Zoro! Are you going to leave such a challenge unanswered?! Pick up your sword!”

If he couldn’t pick up his sword now, when it was so adamantly declaring itself, he had no right to be called a swordsman. That’s the difference between someone who wields a sword and a swordsman, after all. If he could not feel the will of his blades, he wasn’t worthy of the name. A master like Hawk-Eye Mihawk could hear his blade, the way he wielded it so elegantly left no doubt in my mind about that fact. The only question that remained was if Zoro could feel it.

Could he feel the determination of his blade? The weight behind it? The reason why it refused to break while the others fell to pieces?

“Roronoa Zoro-!”

A hand was placed on my shoulder, stopping my words as my body broke from its trance. The strong smell of smoke alerted me to who was standing behind me, so I kept my eyes on the boat, looking for some sort of sign that Luffy’s crewmate had heard me.

“The idiot’s unconscious, mademoiselle. He can’t hear you.”

A frown pulled the corners of my mouth down, the hand that held Luffy’s hat dropped to my waist as my other one reached for Kikoeru. It molded into my hand, humming pleasantly against my skin after faithfully waiting for my touch after I had leaned it against the railing to catch the straw hat.

“It’s not me I’m trying to get him to hear.”

Ignoring Sanji’s questioning silence, I took in a deep breath as I readied myself for another attempt to reach Zoro. However, before I could shout out to him I felt his sword’s voice get stronger. An arm holding the surviving sword peaked out over the railing of the boat, pointing the blade to the sky.

“Luffy... Can you hear me?”

His voice was strained, but it rang out clearly on the windless waters. It seemed to take a great amount of effort for him to speak, but I could sense his sword egging him on. Sanji’s hand dropped from my shoulder.

“I can hear you, Zoro!”

“Were you worried? You need no less than the world’s greatest swordsman, right? If I fail to become… the world’s greatest swordsman… You’ll be disappointed, right!?” A cough disrupted his questions, yet he called out over the worried voices of the two men, “Never again!”

“I will never lose again! Until the day I defeat him and become the greatest swordsman… I will never lose again!”

His sword thrummed with agreement, its own declaration of victory being sent out to the black blade of the grinning Mihawk. For a few seconds, the blade didn’t respond. But soon enough it acknowledged the sword’s proclamation with its own pulse. Even as the answer collided with Zoro’s blade, his arm did not falter under the weight.

“Got a problem with that… King of the Pirates?!”

Luffy grinned broadly.

“Shishishishishi… Not at all!”

Zoro’s arm fell at his captain’s acceptance, the voice of his sword quieting as it was sheathed and its challenge acknowledged. With that, Mihawk turned and began making his way back to his boat. Before he reached it he turned and looked back at Luffy.

“I hope to encounter you two again someday…”

The words seemed to be an admission that he hadn’t planned to say, but he didn’t seem to mind that they slipped out. As he turned once more, his eyes met mine. The narrow golden eyes of his instantly explained his nickname of ‘Hawk-Eye’. It seemed as if he had something to say, but thought better at it and merely smirked my way before the communication was interrupted.

“Hey, Hawk-Eye! Didn’t you come here for my head? The head of Don Krieg, ruler of the East Blue!?”

“That was my intention, but I’ve had enough fun. So I’m going to go home now.”

“You may have had enough, but I’ve only been on the receiving end so far.”

I could only sigh at the man’s persistence in keeping Mihawk around. It was a foolhardy move that would no doubt backfire no matter what foul play Krieg used. This was the man who had single-handedly destroyed his entire fleet, after all. His underlings seemed to understand this.

“D-D-Don Krieg!?”

“If the man wants to go, for the love of God, l-let ‘im go!”

“Why are you trying to keep him here?”

Krieg ignored his underlings and instead his armour opened to reveal the multitude of firearms hidden on his body. Without delay, he rapidly fired them at Mihawk.

“As I expected… You are quite the slow learner.”

KABOOSH!

Water splashed everywhere as Mihawk swung his sword once more, cutting the large chunks of the wrecked flagship into smaller pieces. The greatest swordsman disappeared in the aftermath of his attack.

Two hands placed themselves on the railing in front of me, and before I could think of what that meant Luffy came out from the spray of seawater and hung onto the railing. The momentum behind him pulled him farther than the railing allowed and as a result his head crashed into mine. A splitting pain pounded through my head, and I angrily brought this to his attention.

“Ow, Luffy-!”

“Ow!! That hurt, whoa-!”

As he reeled back from the collision, he lost his footing and was struggling to regain it before his fell into the ocean. Forgetting the momentary anger, my hand shot forwards and grabbed his vest after passing the straw hat to hand that held Kikoeru. Pulling him upright as his foot regained its place on the side of the Baratie, we both let out a deep breath. Still having a hold on his vest, I shook him back and forth as my anger returned.

“Watch where you’re going when you do that, Luffy! Someone could get hurt!!”

“Sorry, sorry!”

He grinned stupidly at me, and I rolled my eyes and released my grip on his vest as the annoyance caused by his recklessness faded almost instantaneously.

“Here, your hat. Be more careful with it! You could end up losing it, you know?”

Placing the straw hat on his head, his grin widened and his hand reached up to push it further down onto his head. He lightly tapped the top of it, as if he was reassuring himself that it was where it belonged before pulling himself up and sitting on the railing.

“Thank you!” He turned back to his crewmates, who were still riding out the large waves that had come from Mihawk’s attack.

The ship seemed to be handling the waves well enough, and when Usopp and Luffy made eye contact the captain started issuing orders.

“Usopp! I’ll leave Nami to you, set sail!”

“Got it! Zoro and I will go after Nami, so make sure you get that cook to join us and follow after us soon! When we’ve got everyone back together we’ll head for the Grand Line!”

“Right!”

My eyes narrowed suspiciously as I took another look at the ship Usopp piloted as it sailed close to the Baratie as it started leaving. I followed its path, inspecting every inch of the small ship that seemed familiar to me. I was about to shrug it off when my eyes came across a gash in the cabin’s wall, exactly the same as the one Kikoeru made in the ship I sailed here with.

The realization struck me.

They were taking _my_ ship to go after their other cremate, Nami.

“Hey!! Why are you taking my ship!?”

“Because we need to go after sister Nami.”

One of the two men unknown to me responded. He wore a black shirt with a long green coat and yellow plaid shots. He wore some sort of strange red headgear on his head and a sword hung at his side. However, I couldn’t feel any soul emanating from it yet.

“Yes, but why are you taking **_my_** ship?!”

“Because Sister Nami took our ship.”

The other man responded this time. He wore sunglasses and had a tattoo on his left cheek. A blue hoodie was unbuttoned and showed a long purple shirt underneath it.

With irritation sinking in as my ship sailed away from me, I turned towards Luffy.

“And why is it that because _your_ crewmate stole _your_ ship, you decided to steal **_my_** ship?!”

“Eh? Stealing isn’t very nice, you know…”

“Says the captain whose crewmates just stole my ship!”

“But Yosaku and Johnny aren’t my crewmates.”

Bringing my hand to my forehead, gently rubbing small circles into the tender skin where Luffy head-butted me, I closed my eyes and let out a deep breath. Calming down, I realized that Luffy probably didn’t even have a plan on how to follow after his crewmates. All the ships carrying passengers to the restaurant had fled soon after Don Krieg showed up, so there was no way I could grab one and head after them right now.

This was a sea-faring restaurant, so they would have to get ingredients from somewhere… If a ship came by to drop off ingredients for the cooks, I could try and get a ride from them. If there wasn’t a ship that brought essentials to the restaurant, then there had to be boats that the cooks used to go out and buy them. It was highly unlikely the Baratie itself made voyages to nearby towns, as that would mean that any customers who sailed to the area would come to an empty sea and the restaurant would undoubtedly lose customers…

So either I stay on the boat until a ship comes by or I convince the cooks to give me a ship to collect my own…

Whichever happened there was one thing that had to happen first in both cases: taking care of the Krieg Pirates.

Opening my eyes again, I saw that the Krieg Pirates had reassembled on some nearby wreckage and Luffy had turned his attention to them. He turned towards chef Zeff, who hadn’t moved an inch as he watched the scene with Mihawk unfurl.

“Hey, pops! If I chase off those guys, can I stop being a chore boy?”

Surprise flitted across the chef’s face before he responded, “What? That’s a deal! If you hung around here for a year the Baratie will get destroyed faster than those pirates could do it.”

Kikoeru rested on my shoulder again as I leaned up against the railing, one leg folded under me as I shifted enough to sit on the wood while my other foot remained planted onto the deck.

“Hey, if you want to get him off the ship quickly after the battle, you should also give us a ship to leave in.”

“Us?”

My eye twitched, and I leaned forward to take hold of his ear and pull it towards me. His head was pulled with it, which I almost didn’t expect due to his rubbery qualities he’d shown so far.

“Of course, ‘us’! You think I’m going to let you off when your crew decided to steal my ship?” Curious, I moved my grip from his ear to his cheek, pulling on it as I continued speaking, “I’m going to go with you when you follow after your crewmates, got it?”

His skin still felt like skin, at the very least. While it still held far more elasticity than a regular human body, I could only assume that when he stretched his skin didn’t actually turn into… rubber? I absent mindedly ran my fingers down Kikoeru, wondering just how many Devil Fruit users I was going to meet. Like the pirates I had met so far I could only assume that there would be users both friendly and less than friendly. Whatever the case was, I never expected to meet one as soon as my journey started.

“Ohkway…”

His response snapped my out of my curiosity, and I let go of his cheek and turned towards chef Zeff.

“Of course, I’ll help out as well with getting rid of the pirates as long as a ship becomes part of the deal. You have one of those lying around, don’tcha?”

My eyes held his gaze as I waited to see his response to the negotiation. As he thought about it, the firm line his lips had been held in since the start of Krieg’s appearance curled up slightly as he responded, “I think we could part with a small ship if you two can deal with the pirates.”

He paused, thinking to himself before taking a step forward, speaking to Luffy.

“You said you were going to be King of the Pirates… Are you serious?”

“Yeah, of course! I’ll definitely become King of the Pirates!”

“You’re the first one in a long time who said that so clearly, chore boy.”

“And you?” He turned to me, a slight grin breaking out on his face at Luffy’s answer, “What are you hoping to accomplish by sailing the seas?”

“It’s nothing as grand as King of the Pirates,” I could see Luffy’s eyes looking at me in curiosity as I continued, “I’m just aiming to see all the horizons this world has to offer.”

“Ah, so you’re looking for adventure, then?”

“Yeah. One that’ll last a lifetime.”

“That’ll take a lot of strength, girl.”

“Then I’ll get stronger. Strong enough to see any horizon I want.”

He laughed, his head tilting back as he did so.

“It seems like I understand why Mihawk said so much before he left.”

While I wanted to ask what he meant by that, the sound of a gunshot rang out and drew my attention as my body tensed. One of Krieg’s pirates had been shot by Krieg himself, and the others watching stilled for a moment before letting out a howl as they fired themselves up to do Krieg’s bidding.

“Go to the control room and open the fins.”

Sanji’s voice broke the silence, and as I looked over to see what he was talking about, the cook he had enlisted the help of seemed surprised.

“Open up the fins? You sure!? Won’t that give the pirates a foothold?”

“That’s what we want.” Sanji patted the wall of the Baratie, his look softening for a second before he sent a glare towards chef Zeff and continued, “If we wreck the whole restaurant the shitty geezer will howl.”

“What was that, you damn brat?”

“Is your hearing failing you? I said you like to complain.” He turned back to the cook who seemed to be terrified of the whole conversation, “Now, go.”

He turned and ran into the Baratie just as the Krieg Pirates started advancing. Luffy hopped down onto the deck and ran until he was standing near the broken doors, placing his hands on the railing and walking backwards. His arms stretched, and soon he was standing near the spiral staircase. The wooden railing creaked lowly.

“Ohh! They’re fired up! Remember your promise, pops! If I take care of them I’m not a chore boy anymore!”

“Yeah.”

“Alright, here I go…” He knelt on one knee, preparing to fire himself into the air and over the railing, “Gum-Gum Rocket…!”

He flung himself towards the pirates in what I could only see as reckless abandon. The pirates who had moved forwards on the wreckage stopped in their tracks as they watched the straw hat (which thankfully stayed on his head this time) shooting towards them. He stretched his arms out from his sides as he neared them, effectively taking out a line of pirates in one swoop.

“And… Gum-Gum Giant Scythe!”

They all fell into the waters below, and Luffy managed to grab onto a mast that leaned over the water, swinging himself to a stop as the momentum caught up with him.

“Hey, that chore boy is pretty good!”

“Good job, chore boy!”

Sliding myself off the railing, I walked over and took up a position in front of the broken doors, where the railing dropped away and gave me a good view of the part of the deck that stuck out from the rest of the ship to let passengers on. But rather than recklessly trying to fight the pirates who were still marooned on the scattered pieces of wreckage, I decided to wait until they tried to make a move to get onto the ship.

There was absolutely no way I was going to risk coming into contact with seawater.

“Sanji! Don’t take your eyes off of him until the fight ends, you hear me?”

“Hmm?”

Glancing over at chef Zeff, I could see he was watching Luffy intently. Sanji looked confused by Zeff’s words, but looked back at Luffy anyway. I followed their examples.

To be honest, I wondered how the stretchy Devil Fruit user would do in battle. His crewmates seemed to trust his skills, but how would they match up to Don Krieg?

“To think you attacked the restaurant after they gave you food… You ungrateful jerk!”

I frowned at the thought. Don Krieg’s failure to keep his promise is what caused me to join the fight in the first place. People who couldn’t keep their word were despicable. Anyone who did such a thing held no respect for their own words, and because of that they would find no sympathy from me. Words and promises are important. When they’re broken…

My mind drifted to my father and brother, but I refocused my mind on the battle I was currently in as my frown deepened.

“So you actually want to fight on the water where you can’t move freely? Those with Devil Fruit powers are helpless in the sea. I know that much about Devil Fruit freaks like you, anchor boy.”

“Yeah, but I can still stretch!”

The sound of scraping metal pierced my ears briefly before a loud, “Forward!” came from the side of the ship.

“Baratie naval warfare weapon: Mackerel Head I!”

“Anyone who doesn’t wanna die had better swim for it!”

“Patty and Carne finally got that thing running, huh?”

The fish head that I thought was an accessory to the restaurant turned out to be its own ship which two cooks powered. The vessel made its way towards the wreckage and the Krieg Pirates as the two bickered back and forth. Eventually the fish head started firing at the pirates from the canons hidden in its mouth.

“Go Patty and Carne! Blast ‘em all!”

“Show ‘em what Baratie’s made of!”

Cheers from the cooks and the explosions that racked the wreckage nearly drowned out the call from within the Baratie, “The fins are gonna open up now!”

Uncertain what he was talking about when nothing happened, I figured that something had gone wrong with ‘opening the fins’. However, I was quickly proven wrong when a large platform folded out from under the ship, slowly raising until it was in line with the wooden deck the cooks and I were standing on.

“From the ocean!”

“It’s a deck!”

The pirates that were still floating in the water called out their surprise as the water drained from the platform. It seemed like it was a platform that Baratie could raise when they needed an area to fight on, but didn’t want to damage the ship.

“Hey, is this stable?”

One of the cooks looked over at me as I asked the question, pausing in his task of handing out what looked like to be large forks and knives to the cooks. Sanji didn’t take one.

“Yeah, it’s locked in now, so it’ll stay like that until we want them taken down.”

Nodding at his response, I walked forward and hesitantly stepped onto the wet boards that came up from the ocean. There was no lichen or anything growing on it, so I assumed that they had to spread the fins of the Baratie regularly or at least clean them every so often.

“When the weather’s nice and we get a lot of customers, sometimes we raise the deck and set up tables outside.” Chef Zeff seems to have noticed the curious looks I was giving the wood, and answered my question even before I could ask it.

The pirates started to make their move, swimming towards the Baratie and grabbing hold of the fighting deck. Out of the corner of my eye I could see some of them heading towards the other side of the Baratie, where I guessed another fin had surfaced.

“Alright, if some of you cooks still want to fight, head over to the other side of the Baratie. Some of the pirates are making their way over!”

At my call, most nodded and left to fight on the other side. Only a handful including Sanji and Zeff stayed on the side facing the wreck of Krieg’s flagship. It was better for me when there weren’t a lot of people nearby for fighting. Many of the attacks for Kikoeru resulted from having a large enough area to swing it around. While I could fight with others around, it would be difficult to keep track of where everyone was and where they would be going so that I didn’t accidentally hit them with Kikoeru.

Stepping into the center of the fight deck, I readied Kikoeru, pulling it from its resting place on my shoulder and wrapping my fingers around it tightly as I sunk into my stance. Krieg had about a hundred pirates still able to fight. He had taken a few out himself, Luffy had taken out about twenty or so with his attack, Patty and Carne took out around thirty or so with the Mackerel Head I…. So that left around half of them still attacking the Baratie.

Out of those fifty, most of them were heading for this fighting deck.

My eyes scanned the pirates in the water and the ones who were climbing up onto the deck. Counting who I could see it seemed like thirty were hanging around this side of the Baratie while the others headed to the other side. Baratie had enough cooks to handle that number, give or take a few pirates.

But could I take on thirty pirates?

Before doubt could plague my mind, Kikoeru hummed in my hands, bringing me back to the task at hand. Speaking quietly to Kikoeru, I calmed my mind and prepared myself for the fight ahead.

“You’re right, Kikoeru. It doesn’t matter if I can take on thirty pirates or not. The question is whether or not _they_ can take me on. There’s no way I’m going to lose because there are more of them than us.”

The pirates started climbing onto the fighting deck one by one, rushing towards me as soon as they were able. Soon they were close enough to attack, and so I did.

Kikoeru sliced through the skin of one pirate after another as the first wave bore down on me. Spinning myself around to avoid a sword before ducking to avoid the wild swing of a club, before swinging Kikoeru upwards and taking care of one of them I smirked as I found myself settling into the rhythm of the battle nicely. The pirate with the club swung low this time, and I pushed myself off the deck in order to jump over his attack before swinging Kikoeru down on him, slicing deeply into his shoulder before avoiding the sharp point of a spear as I backed up quickly.

 There was a pause after ten pirates had been either killed or incapacitated in this way. My breath was still evenly entering and leaving my lungs as the pirates who had witnessed me stop their first assault started to size me up before approaching. There were still some that floated in the water, waiting for the second wave filled with those that had hung back to see what I was capable of attack before they did.

Most of those who were readying themselves for the next attack had swords with them, but none of them spoke to me.

“She’s just a little girl, stop playing around and kill her!”

Don Krieg’s call stirred them, and they charged against me.

Deflecting the sword strike of a pirate, I swung Kikoeru around as I shifted positions in order to attack the defenseless pirate, but a fast motion from the corner of my eye quickly changed the attack into the block of another sword, this time the staff of Kikoeru absorbing the blow. The attacking pirate struggled to overpower me as I held my position, but the glance he sent above my head alerted me to the approach of another pirate. Realizing that my hands were in the way of deflecting the blade to the side, my left hand let go of Kikoeru while the right hand titled the glaive upwards on an angle. The man’s sword followed the length of Kikoeru as his attempt to overpower me only added to the gravity that brought the blade down.

I shifted behind the man, harshly kicking him in the back as I moved Kikoeru out of his way when he tumbled to the ground. Seeing the man that had wanted to attack me from behind, I stepped forward and twirled Kikoeru with both of my hands, slicing the man vertically with both of Kikoeru’s blades. He fell to the floor covered in his own blood. The man I had kicked reached for the sword he had dropped in surprise, and I stuck Kikoeru firmly into his back – where the heart would be – and watched his fingers go limp just as they grabbed the handle of his sword.

But I didn’t have the time to mourn the death of the pirates right now. Not as another three were approaching quickly, stepping over the bodies and weapons I had left behind in my wake. Kikoeru buzzed in my hand, the reverberations running through my whole body as I centered myself and readied Kikoeru by placing it at my right hip. They paused just before they got into range, seeing me ready Kikoeru for another attack. I smirked at the grins they gave each other when they thought they were safe from my attack.

I could tell they didn’t think I could move without having to take time to get back into my stance, but they would soon realize that wasn’t the case. Swinging Kikoeru quickly from my right hip to my left, I hopped over the dead pirate and got them all in range.

Kikoeru sliced through them deeply, but not enough to kill them. Angling Kikoeru up slightly while taking another step towards them, I swung the dual glaive back to my right hip. The three pirates fell to their knees as Kikoeru sliced through their throats cleanly.

Fifteen pirates were now dead on the deck.

Five surrounded me, each staying outside of my deadly range. They were just far enough from each other that I couldn’t take down multiple targets if I attacked, but still remained close enough that if I attacked one of them I’d have difficulty blocking the subsequent attacks from the remaining four.

With a deep breath, I came out of my stance and spun Kikoeru above my head. I called to the metal, which the blade answered to instantaneously. Its aura pulsed forth, coating the blade in a blue glow before it faded and left the sharpened part of the blade the same white-blue hue of my eyes. My gaze left the glowing metal to watch my opponents, quickly verifying how far away they were standing and where. Halfway through a new rotation, I brought Kikoeru down from above my head, following the glaive’s momentum as I spun around until Kikoeru slowed and brought the weapon to a rest at my hip.

Only ten more pirates remained.

The five pirates dropped to the ground, their bodies covered with deep gashes even though I had not made a single step towards any of them.

Kikoeru hummed in satisfaction as its aura returned to normal, the white-blue glow leaving the metal. While it seemed like the pirates fell over from nothing, Kikoeru’s aura is highly compatible with wind. Most of the blades that can maintain their aura, either being residual from its creator or from connecting with their past or present wielder can have different affinities. However, most blades don’t meet their full potential.

When the blade’s aura is activated, it can produce surprising effects based on its affinity. One of which for a wind-affinity blade like Kikoeru is to extend the range of its attack. Kikoeru forces its aura out of its blade, which then travels through the air and then carries out its will to cut objects or people.

To those that can’t sense the aura of a blade, though…

“H-how did she do that?”

“What happened?!”

“They were out of her range!”

“Do you think she moved fast enough that we couldn’t see it…?”

“No way, why didn’t she just cut us down before this then?”

It seems like some sort of magic power. The remaining pirates hung around the edges of the fighting deck, one or two diving into the water and surfacing to keep track of my movements like the rest. Before I could advance towards them, though, a shadow fell over me.

“Mademoiselle, look out!”

Looking up, I saw the Mackerel Head I flying towards me. Before I could react to the new threat, Sanji jumped up and diverted the ship’s path with a kick. He landed beside me as the ship punched a hole into the fighting deck.

“With just one kick?”

“What leg strength!”

“What kind of cooks are these?”

The remaining pirates seemed to be surprised by Sanji’s immense kicking power. However, the moment of surprise vanished with Patty and Carne finding their way out from the deck and shouting at him.

“Sanji, you jerk!”

“Are you trying to kill your own allies?!”

He ignored the two of them as he turned to me, taking the hand that was free from Kikoeru’s staff.

“Mademoiselle, are you okay?”

Peering behind Sanji at the furious cooks before returning my attention to him and the way concern creased his brow.

“I’m fine. Thank you for your help Sanji.”

He had a weird look on his face and let go of my hands to clutch at his heart.

“…Are _you_ okay, Sanji?”

“Oh, mademoiselle, how it makes my heart race to hear you say my name! Fret not mademoiselle, the only thing wrong with me…” He did something akin to a happy dance before turning back to Patty and Carne, “Is that I didn’t kick these two idiots hard enough for endangering my little mademoiselle when she was fighting!”

“Oh, that’s quite alright. After all, no harm was done. Except for the pirates they may or may not have cru-“

“That’s right, mademoiselle! There was no way I’d allow the actions of shitty idiots to cause you any harm~!”

Before a fight could break out between the cooks, I peered out at them again, “Hey, if you wanna do some fighting the cooks are all over on the other deck,” I looked around at the bodies that were lying on the deck – some still breathing, some not, “I’ve got this one under control.”

They nodded at me, still glaring holes into Sanji’s back as they left for the other deck.

“There’s no way we’ll let those sea-rats beat the fighting cooks of Baratie!”

Before long, I could hear the cooks getting fired up on the other side of the Baratie with Patty and Carne’s arrival. However, my mind soon focused once more on the fight at hand as something came flying quickly at me from the water.

Able to dodge it just in time, it whizzed past my face. One of the cooks who had stayed behind on this side of the Baratie wasn’t as lucky. He crashed to the ground as a pirate stronger notably than the others pulled himself onto the deck.

“Hmm… Just what have you all been doing?”

A tall man with large iron plates covering his front and back spoke. Said plates were circular with an orange design etched into them, and from what I could see an inch or so thick. In the center of the plates large pearls were embedded into the metal. Smaller plates covered his knees and elbows, and he held two in his hands. He wore a pearl shaped hat which covered his black hair.

“Unassailable, hence invincible! When someone says ‘Pearl, the Invincible Shield of the Krieg Pirates,’ they mean me!”

There was no way that Kikoeru could cut through that much metal in one strike. Kura said that a blade cutting through metal isn’t impossible, but I had failed to do so during my training with the pirate… I simply wasn’t experienced enough to do something that took lots of time and training.

My shoulders slumped.

This was going to be a pain.


	8. Pearl the Iron Wall

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 8: Pearl the Iron Wall

Sanji remained by my side as I readied Kikoeru again, dropping into my familiar stance as I kept track of who still had the will to fight. Pearl’s appearance seemed to have caused a boost in morale, and the pirates that had jumped into the water soon pulled themselves back up on the fight deck.

“A bunch of lousy cooks can’t beat us now that Pearl’s here!”

“She might be stronger than she looks, but she’ll give up as soon as she sees Pearl in action!”

“That’s right! Pearl’s never even been hurt in battle! We can’t lose!”

“Yeah, the only reason why she’s lasted this long is because we were going easy on her ‘cause she’s just a little girl!”

 “Soon enough this grub ship’ll be ours!”

They started charging, and my grip on Kikoeru changed as I prepared myself for the attack. Sanji’s figure stepped out in front of me.

“Mademoiselle, allow me to take care of the leftovers.” Sanji met my questioning gaze as he explained further, “To insult a cook on the sea is one thing. But to insult a lady is unacceptable!”

Nodding at him, I relaxed my body and stood up from my stance. Kikoeru came to a rest on my shoulder as I backed up a few steps to give Sanji some room to maneuver. The movement was unnecessary on my part, as Sanji dealt with the remaining pirates with a flurry of kicks. His hands found their way back into his pockets as he exhaled smoke from the cigarette that hung from his mouth.

The only people left standing on the fight deck were myself, Sanji, and the smug-looking man named Pearl.

“So you beat them down with kicks alone.” Pearl gave a short, haughty laugh, “Is that your fighting style?”

“A cook’s hands are his life. I can’t risk damaging them in battle.” Sanji walked back towards me with those words, his strides were long and quiet as he reached my side, “I’ll let you take it from here, mademoiselle, but I can’t promise I won’t beat the crap out of him if he insults you.”

He placed a hand on my shoulder gently before walking past me and back towards the original deck of the Baratie where chef Zeff and a few others still stood. The cook that had gotten hit by Pearl’s attack seemed to be out cold, and I could see a small black sphere rolling back and forth in the grooves of the wooden planks.

I appreciated the cook’s concern, and the fact that he backed off from my fight when his anger dimmed… But the fact that he felt he had to protect my ‘honour’ seemed a little strange to me, and left a slight sour taste in my mouth. Sure, it seemed like it was just his personality and he seemed to understand that I could take care of myself…

But I could also fight my own battles.

Turning my attention back to Pearl, my fingers clutched the wooden staff of Kikoeru as it hummed against my skin, excited to face another opponent.

“That cook might protect his hands, but I protect my whole body when I fight. What are you going to do, girl? I’ve never lost a single drop of blood in battle. Not one drop. In all 61 of my battles, I’ve never been harmed!” He clanged the two smaller pearl shields he held in his hands together before posing, “I’m a shield man and as handsome as I am strong. As smooth as polished silver.”

Rolling my shoulder and sinking into my stance, readying Kikoeru for the fight against the long-winded shield man I replied, “I didn’t ask and I don’t care. Are you done talking yet? Or is talk all you have?”

He fumed at this, clanging his hands together again.

“A cannonball shot from a navy ship couldn’t hurt me at all!”

“Do I look like a cannonball to you?”

“I grew up in a jungle filled with wild beasts, surviving for years before I joined the Krieg Pirates!”

“I still don’t care.”

He was gritting his teeth now, his face scrunching up in fury at every comment I made. Soon enough, he was enraged and hitting his hands together furiously as he spouted more nonsense.

I ignored his voice, and sized him up. It seemed like he could defend any part of his unprotected body reasonably well with only a little movement. If he hadn’t gotten a scratch from 61 fights, he either fought weak opponents or was fast enough to block the unprotected parts of his body even with the amount of heavy metal that protected him. A cannonball couldn’t hurt him, so the metal was too strong for me to cut through…

If I wanted to cut him, then my best chance would probably be attacking his side or legs. His face, although I dearly wanted to hit it, would be the easiest place for him to counter-attack. But with all that metal on his body, perhaps I could try to use my Devil Fruit abilities on him. With Kikoeru I could generate enough electricity to knock a person out without calling for a storm cloud.

Looking around at the dwindling audience I had to contend with, it wouldn’t be the end of the world to create a storm… But I’d save that for a last resort. If I wanted to get stronger, I needed to defeat Pearl without relying too much on my powers.

Making him bleed seemed like a reasonable goal to reach before I used my powers to knock him out.

“-There are none who are more handsome than I when striking their opponents-“

Seeing as he was still talking, I decided to make the first move. My feet moved deftly over the bodies of his fallen crewmates, and he finally stopped speaking as he saw me approach. Kikoeru clashed with the shield positioned on his elbow, redirecting the dual glaive downwards and across my body as he pulled back his hand back. Quickly reacting to the efficient block, I added my left hand to Kikoeru, spinning the blade around again to make a second attack. Pearl’s hand shield collided with Kikoeru, sending the blade towards the ground again. However, Pearl was slow to retract his hands after he threw his punches. With the force he put behind them I could only assume that most of his battles had ended with the first hit – the blunt force trauma enough to knock any normal human out cold.

Seeing an opening, I hastened Kikoeru’s circular motion, aiming to cut his cheek before he could withdraw. I could see his eyes widen as Kikoeru’s sharp edge close in on his face, but the opportunity to land a hit on him passed quickly as he tucked his chin behind the large shield which covered his chest and tilted the pearl situated on top of his head towards the blade. Before I could see Kikoeru bounce off the smooth surface, my body bent over itself as I was sent flying.

Gasping out loudly as Pearl’s kick caught me by surprise, I flipped my body around in the air and landed on my feet, skidding to a halt in the same position I had started from. As my knees bent to absorb the harsh landing my body hunched over as my hands ran over my stomach as a habit acquired from Kura’s training: there was no blood.

Feeling stupid for checking myself for blood when Pearl had no sharp objects on him, I took a deep breath and twisted my shoulders and cracked my spine. He kicked pretty hard for a man wearing armour, and said armour had restricted the power he could get from his legs. The large shield on his front and the shields protecting his knees had collided when he kicked me, his body leaning back for the lack of flexibility he had.

Before I could think about attacking him again, he appeared beside me, enraged. Ducking to avoid an unexpected punch I stepped around to his side, attempting to get a clear view of the unprotected body sandwiched between two metal plates. He still hadn’t retracted his punch, his entire body following behind it and leaving the side I was looking at unprotected. With an upward slash of Kikoeru my foot slid forwards to gain distance in case he managed to pull away at the last second as well as to keep myself balanced and able to move if I needed to.

Kikoeru collided with the rim of his large chest shield. He managed to twist his body just enough to stop my attack from etching itself into his skin, and now used that momentum to throw an elbow towards my face. Stepping backwards quickly, I dodged the wide surface of his elbow shield, but I was unable to move back far enough to dodge the extended range of his backhand strike he turned his elbow strike into.

My arm took the brunt of the attack, the pearl digging fiercely into my skin and I could feel the muscle beneath move to make way for the contact. Less equipped to handle the attack my legs swept out from under me as they met with one of the many bodies scattered on the fight deck. Landing harshly on my back, pain flared through my arm but I could tell it wasn’t broken. I had enough of a guard up and Pearl’s stance had been terribly off when he struck me from his impromptu manoeuvering that the only power that transferred into my body came from the movement of his arm only. Had his whole body been into the strike, it might’ve had an inkling of Kura’s monstrous strength.

Once again, Pearl pursued me. His hand shield collided with the fighting deck and shattered the wood, a hole formed at the spot where my head had been only moments before I rolled out of the way. Jumping to my feet and taking several swipes at Pearl with Kikoeru as he retreated from the dual glaive’s long range. One look at his face told me that he was still enraged, his eyes burning with murderous intent. Completely lost as to why he was so furious, as my earlier riling had faded the second I moved to attack, my eyes searched for a reason as I continued keeping the man at a distance.

Pearl jumped back, and I didn’t follow. The fight paused for a second as we stared at each other, evaluating what we had learned from the encounter.

At least, that’s what I was doing.

“How dare you ruin my image, girl! My hair, my luscious lock!”

Confused about what he was ranting about, I looked up at his forehead, where a curl of hair escaped from the pearl hat. It was cut on an unnatural angle, and I could only assume that Kikoeru had cut it when I had aimed for his head, causing him to fly into a rage. My breathing was still even and the pain in my stomach and arm was ignorable, the practice with Kura seemed to have been a very good idea on her part.

“Are you still blathering?”

“Why I-“

“Maybe you _are_ just all talk.”

“You-“

“If I had known how boring this fight was gonna be, I would’ve let Sanji deal with you.”

“I’ve landed two hits, you’ve yet to scratch me, girl!”

“What? You were trying with those? I thought that was just a warm-up.”

He was riled up again, and this time I could tell that he wasn’t going to just keep talking about it. Perfect. Just a little more, I think. I swung Kikoeru up across my shoulders, the crooks of my elbows curling around the smooth wooden shaft of the dual glaive as I leaned back and managed to crack my back again.

“You know, I think I’m warmed up. Let me know when you actually want to start fighting, okay?”

“This isn’t a game, girl!”

He charged at me in a blind rage, and I couldn’t keep the smirk off my face as I bent my knees slightly and rolled my arms down Kikoeru, my fingers now grasping my weapon tightly as he stepped into range. Easily dodging his fury-driven punches, I weaved between his attacks and found myself in nearly standing chest to chest with him. While he reared his hands back to smash my head in between them, I lowered my head and slid Kikoeru off my shoulders. Ducking under his outstretched arm, the shaft of Kikoeru slid against Pearl’s chest shield, the blade pointing upwards and cutting through the skin of his arm.

After Kikoeru’s blade left Pearl’s body, I quickly rolled away from him. After I was a safe distance away, I stopped myself and looked back at the damage Kikoeru had caused as I stood up from the roll. Pearl had a deep gash in his arm, blood leaking from the wound and staining his shirt with the red colour. His fingers traced the injury, the red substance flowing onto his hand and he moved the stained skin into his sight.

Well, I spilt his blood, so now I can test out my–

From the corner of my eye I saw a flash of red heading straight towards me. I crouched just in time to dodge what I realized was Luffy as he flew into the fighting deck. Springing up, completely unfazed by how fast he had fit the deck, he dusted off his vest as he let out a breath.

“Phew, that startled me. It’s a good thing I didn’t fall into the ocean…” He then looked up and noticed me, walking towards me with not a care in the world, “Hey! You seem to be a pretty good fighter-?”

Halfway through his sentence he seemed to notice the tension in the air as everyone watched Pearl look at his blood with a horrified expression on his face.

 “ **Blood!?** ”

“Please calm down, Pearl!”

“ **My invincible shield failed! Th-th-his girl is dangerous!** ”

“What’s with this guy?” Luffy looked towards me for an answer, but I merely shrugged my shoulders.

“He’s acting weird…” Sanji had walked over to us, just as clueless as Luffy and I at why the man suddenly started freaking out.

“Is he scared of blood? Or maybe he’s a little upset about losing his streak?”

He started slamming his hand shields together rapidly, sparks flying from the friction caused by the frantic movements.

“Stop Pearl! It’s just a little blood, you’re not in the jungle anymore! Losing control is what got you in this mess!” Don Krieg’s voice was lost on the man, who instead slammed the shields together even faster.

“This… doesn’t look good.” My hands ran through my hair as I spoke, pushing back some strands which had fallen out of place during the fight.

 “ **Danger! Danger! Danger!** ”

With a final clash of his shields, a spark caught the metal on fire, engulfing Pearl in a wall of hot blue flames. While the surface of his shields were on fire, it seemed that his body didn’t combust into flames, and he didn’t seem to even notice the heat.

“Aaaaand he’s on fire now. Just great.”

“Why would that be a good thing-?”

“I was being sarcastic, Luffy.”

“ **Get away from me! Fire Pearls… Special Treat!** ”

Pearl threw multiple flaming spheres at us, spreading the flames over the fighting deck as the three of us dodged the ranged onslaught. Even as we dodged Pearl’s attack, the heat of the fire still licked at my skin as what looked like to be pearls whizzed by. Glancing at the Baratie, I could see the fire hadn’t caught the restaurant yet, but with the fighting deck in flames it wouldn’t be long until the same happened to the building.

Those that were still alive on the flaming deck quickly made their way to the ship’s edge and plunged into the water below.

“ **Burn! With my fire and my flaming shield, I’m super-invincible!** ”

“This isn’t good! The restaurant will catch fire!”

Since Pearl’s continuous attack seemed to be following me, I ran around the flames and bodies until the pearls that the man was shooting fired out into the wreckage. Some platforms caught fire, but by the time the pearls reached them the flames that surrounded the spheres had become only a flicker and at most burned the wood where they landed before they were extinguished.

“I’m not gonna let you burn down this restaurant!”

Sanji jumped up and attacked Pearl with a kick. Pearl managed to block it with a flaming shield before shoving the cook off of him.

“What?! All fierce animals wouldn’t jump that wall of fire!”

He seemed to regain some sanity after Sanji’s attack, getting angry when he saw that his attack wasn’t working. With his words the mystery of ‘fire mode’ Pearl made sense. Sort of. He grew up in the jungle, so as a defence mechanism he would light fires to scare away predators.

“Moron. You can’t be a cook if you’re afraid of fire!”

With that, Sanji dodged the rage-fueled ‘flaming Pearl surprise!’ and kicked Pearl in the face. Pearl fell over onto his back, the fire surrounding him not extinguished yet. Twirling Kikoeru behind my back as I used the power of my Devil Fruit. The fire that covered the fighting deck were sucked into the wind tunnel I created and forced the flames upwards where they died. When the regular flames were dealt with, I focused my attention on snuffing out the white hot fire that encased Pearl. It took a little longer, but soon those flames had been pulled away from its source and Pearl was left with his regular shields.

“How dare you! How dare you! How **dare** you!”

Pearl lashed out blindly. Sending more of his pearls out, Sanji easily dodged the attack but the flameless pearls still hurled through the air towards chef Zeff. However, the former Grand Line adventurer hardly looked impressed by the attack. With a kick so fast that if you blinked you missed it, Zeff slowed the pearls down enough so that they didn’t even put a dent into the walls of Baratie.

“Something like that was child’s play.”

“He… stopped my pearls with just the wind from his kick?!” Pearl didn’t seem to be able to comprehend what that meant.

“Nice move, mister!” Luffy grinned widely at the man.

“That Pearl, always complicating things!” Don Krieg’s voice called out above the others, his anger evident as he directed a huge spiked ball towards Sanji and Pearl.

“Sanji, look out-!”

My warning died in my throat as I saw Luffy jump in front of the cook, stretching his arms back before they snapped forwards and pushed away the spiked iron ball.

“Gum-Gum Bazooka!”

The redirected weapon hit the base of a mast which was still standing on the wreckage. It slowly fell towards the Baratie, Sanji and Luffy scurried to get out of its path. Pearl, who didn’t move, was hit directly on the head and knocked unconscious. I quickly joined the pair, looking at Pearl’s unmoving body in perplexity as I questioned why he didn’t move when he saw the straw hat and cook get out of the way.

“Well, that was something.”

“You can say that again, mademoiselle.”

“What was that? That weird guy sure is dumb…”

A grunt of pain came from behind us, and I turned to see Zeff on the ground with Gin placing one foot on the man’s back. In one hand he held a broken part of the chef’s peg leg, in the other he held a gun which was pointed at Zeff’s head. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Sanji begin to take a step towards Zeff, but the sound of Gin cocking the pistol stopped him in his tracks.

“Hold it right there.”

“Gin?!”

The name echoed from the three of us, all unsure at how we should view the scene in front of us.

“No matter how incredible he was in the past, now he’s just a cook. I won’t lose sleep over splatterin’ his brains on the deck.” Both Sanji and Luffy tensed at the mention of the cook’s death. I remained still, unfazed.

“You want to save this man, right, Sanji? Then get off this ship.”

“Leave the ship? I refuse.” Sanji lit another cigarette before continuing, “You look pathetic, shitty geezer. You’re setting a bad example for the fighting cooks.”

“Hmph! I don’t need a lecture from a brat like you.”

“Don’t call me a brat, geezer! Quit treating me like a kid already!”

Sanji took a deep breath, calming himself down before returning his attention to Gin.

“Gin! Point that pistol at me.”

“Are you stupid?! You’ll die!”

Both Zeff and Gin seemed to share the same sentiment as Luffy, the look of surprise flashing across their faces momentarily.

“Maybe...”

Sanji seemed to shrug off Luffy’s concern. His posture was relaxed, and his face held no hints towards the direction of his thoughts.

“If you want to die so bad, I’ll polish you off like you’re silver!” Looking over my shoulder I could see that Pearl was on his feet again, blood dripping from his nose as a result of Sanji’s kick. The cut I had made in his arm was still bleeding as well, a trail of blood running down the skin and dripping off of the shield he held in his hand. “Don’t move. Unless you want your chef to lose his head...?”

Pearl walked up to Sanji with a smug smile on his face, towering over him before reeling his fist backwards.

“The Absolutely Natural Pearl Surprise!”

My shoes skidded on the wood, my body being pushed back by the force of the punch as I redirected it. Using the bulge that the embedded pearl created as a foothold for Kikoeru, I followed the motion of Pearl’s punch, and caused the shield to smash into the boards of the fighting deck.

“Mademoiselle?!”

“What are you-?!”

Both Sanji and Luffy voiced their surprise as they realized I had stepped between the cook and the pirate. After Pearl’s eyes met mine, he jumped back a few paces, warily regarding me as I threw Kikoeru over my shoulder.

“Hey, I told you not to move!”

“And I told you that I don’t care what you say.”

A vein on Pearl’s forehead made itself known with my answer, but he said nothing else.

“Don’t move.” Gin growled at me, pressing the pistol against Zeff’s head to prove a point.

“Chef Zeff, what was the deal I made with you?” My eyes slid over to his collapsed form and met his eyes. His body shook silently before letting out a loud laugh, much to the confusion of Gin, Luffy, and Sanji.

“You’ll get rid of the pirates and I’ll give you a boat.” He grinned up at me as his eyes crinkled near their edges.

“So it would seem that I’m under no obligation to protect either Baratie or you, isn’t that right?”

“That’s correct.”

I smirked, my eyes moving forwards to look at Pearl.

“Well, isn’t that a shame?”

“Mademoiselle, I can’t let you-!”

I felt Sanji’s hand grab my shoulder, but I refused to take my eyes off of Pearl.

“Be careful now, Sanji. If you move Gin’ll blow chef Zeff’s brains out on the floor. I know _I_ won’t lose any sleep over it. But will _you_?” His grip tightened at my words.

“Traitor!” Luffy’s voice rang out, and my gaze left Pearl to look at him. He was angry, the way he gritted his teeth and clenched his fists told me that much.

“Traitor? As chef Zeff confirmed, I’ve got no reason to do anything but drive out the pirates. You guys are a nice bunch, so I figured I’d try and help you out beyond that. You wanna fight and protect the cooks? Fine. You wanna fight and protect the ship? Fine. You wanna fight and protect the Owner? Fine. I’ll help with what I can.” I turned to Sanji, his hand falling away from my shoulder as my eyes found his blond hair covering the expression on his face, “You want me to give up and tie my hands behind my back? Sorry, but that’s where I’ve gotta draw the line.”

He raised his face, the expression once hidden from me revealed itself. A mix of anger, determination, sadness, guilt, and gratitude pulled at his face as he spoke, “This ship is the damn geezer’s pride and joy! I took everything that old man had: his strength, his dream, his leg! So I’ll never let anything else be taken from him!”

“That’s all well and good, Sanji, but I don’t share the same sentiment.”

“If that crap-geezer dies, you can kiss that ship of yours goodbye! Just stay put!”

“If it comes down to that, do what you need to do!”

“Wait! Mademoiselle-!”

**BAM!**

The sound surprised me, but as I looked over towards chef Zeff he still had his head intact. A hand pushed me down a split second before something zipped by my face. I felt a sting and a strange heat on my cheek, but I pushed that sensation to the back of my mind as my hands cushioned my fall and prevented my chest from hitting the deck.

“Pearl Cymbals!”

Flipping over onto my back as I scurried into a sitting position, I saw Pearl sandwiching Sanji’s head between his handheld shields, the pearls embedded in them focusing the blow. My eyes swiveled to the distance, seeing Don Krieg aiming a recently fired pistol in my direction before tucking it back into one of the many hiding places on his body.

“Sanji!” My voice called his name without thinking about it, a twinge in my heart spreading throughout my body as I saw Sanji’s body falling limply through the air, blood running down his face. But he didn’t hit the floor. His body regained strength, and his legs held his weight even though his upper body still descended from the force of the blow. His head hung between his legs, and I could see his back move up and down as he took a few breaths.

“What? He survived a direct blow?”

“I won’t let you have this restaurant, and I won’t let you kill the shitty geezer, either!” Sanji’s body straightened itself, his hand wiping some blood off of his chin before adjusting his tie, “So I’ll defend him with my life and repay my debt to the fool!”

While he put on a strong front, Sanji swayed were he stood. It seemed that the blow had disoriented him at the very least. Pain etched itself into his face, but with that pain there was also an insane amount of determination that kept him standing.

“Why didn’t you just go down, Sanji!?”

“In order for this place to remain a restaurant for even one moment longer…” He smirked as he said this, seemingly not fazed by the fact that he could possibly be dying for a hunk of floating wood.

“Hah! Your words are slicker than polished silver! But I’m getting tired of listening to your problems!”

Jumping up, I spun Kikoeru around quickly, harnessing the power of the Storm Storm Fruit. A tingling sensation ran down my fingers and extended into the Kikoeru. Out of habit I had created electricity in my hand as well as focusing my Devil Fruit powers on the blades of Kikoeru, and with a quick glance at the staff of the dual glaive I could see that the parts of the staff had been cut out and replaced with small metal cylinders that dotted the dark coloured wood. The metal pieces were no bigger than the size of a nail’s head, and they were grouped in pairs as they extended down the shaft in even increments. From how the electricity generated by my hands found its way to the inside of Kikoeru before traveling to one blade or the other, I could only guess that the metal pieces extended through the width of the wooden covering and connected to the metal rod that was hidden inside.

Kura must’ve added the metal just before I left the island, I would’ve noticed them during one of the many times I studied the weapon when I was training.

“Kikoeru Lightning!”

Focusing on the present, I stopped Kikoeru’s spin and aimed one of the blades at Pearl. Electricity shot out from the metal, striking Pearl as he turned to see what the crackling sound that accompanied the technique was. A blinding light caused me to squint my eyes as I felt Kikoeru drain of all the artificial electricity. When the light faded, Pearl had fallen over, foaming at the mouth. I couldn’t confirm whether or not he was dead, but there was no way he was going to interfere with the fight. Hell, I don’t think he’ll even be able to move for a few days if he survived.

It was only then that I realized Luffy had stretched his leg straight into the air.

“Gum-Gum Battle Axe!”


	9. Don Krieg's Defeat

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 9: Don Krieg’s Defeat

Kikoeru was securely fastened onto my back by the time Luffy’s foot hit the fighting deck. Said surface broke apart from the impact, large chunks of the fighting deck drifted along with the waves caused by Luffy’s attack. The wood surged under me and my muscles tensed in order to prevent the impact of the water crashing against the wreckage from throwing me into the sea. But as the waves sloshed against the deck from multiple directions, I knelt down on one knee to keep my balance. My palms braced themselves on the wet wood, keeping me anchored to the free-floating chunk.

I saw the Baratie drifting away from me, the rough waves causing my piece of wreckage to float away from the safety of the ship. The gap was small, but looking down into the depths of the sea dredged up an intense fear that I’d never known before. It froze my blood and thundered in my heart, shaking me down to my core. Rain poured down as it returned to the sea, coating my body in the smell of salt.

“The fin! He shattered it!”

The wood lurched from underneath me, and I was thrown onto my side in my surprise. The shattered pieces of the fin had started crashing against one another, the water not yet calmed from the disturbance of Luffy’s impulsive action. My body jolted again, sliding on the wet surface towards the edge of the wood. The fear inspired desperation, adrenaline kicking in as I scurried back to the middle. My fingertips rubbed themselves raw as I tried to gain a grip in the grooves of the floorboards, trying to find some sort of hold that could soothe the panic that wrapped itself around my brain.

If I fell into the sea, I would sink.

If I fell into the sea, the hidden scars on my legs would open again.

If I fell into the sea…

The fear increased vividly as I thought about the third thing I learned under Kura’s instruction, so I willed the incomplete thought away, quelling the anxiety that raged in my heart. The wreck stopped swaying, and while my breathing returned to normal my grip only tightened.

“That kid’s up to something! Gin, blow a hole in Zeff’s head!”

Krieg’s voice called out, but when I tried to lift my eyes from the water between myself and the Baratie I found that they didn’t respond. My mind was still bent on getting to the safety of the vessel, where I would be safe.

“Hey, I never touched you guys! All I did was bust the fin.”

“Hey, chore boy! What do you think you’re doing?!”

“I’m going to sink this ship.”

Chuckling, I felt my body relax enough to shuffle my feet under me. My fingers traced the wood as I slowly oriented myself so that I could see what was going on. My body still refused to stand, the fear still controlling my muscles and believing that the closer I was to the wood the harder it would be to get knocked off. For that reason I remained crouched and directly in the center of the one thing keeping me afloat.

“Are you crazy, you shitty bastard?” Sanji marched over to Luffy and grabbed him by the vest, anger permeating from his entire being, “Don’t you realize why I’ve slaved away all this time on this ship?!”

“Yeah, but if I destroy the ship, there’ll be no reason for them to attack.”

I couldn’t argue with him there. In the short time I’ve known Luffy, it’s easy to see he isn’t too complex. Straightforward, honest, and will think of the simplest way to solve a problem. This, not to mention his complete disregard for danger, seems to be a very dangerous combination for a pirate captain. Or, better yet, a Pirate King. There’s just no way to stay mad at him for very long.

“What do you know?! My enormous debt… the way I feel about this ship… You could never understand!”

“So you’re gonna die for the restaurant? Are you stupid or something?” Luffy released himself from Sanji’s grip before grabbing the cook in the same manner, anger starting to show in the young man “Dying isn’t something you should do to repay kindness! That’s not what he saved you for! He didn’t save your life just so you could throw it away! Only a weakling would do that!”

Luffy was right. Or at least, that’s the way I thought about Kura’s help in training me for my journey. There was no doubt in my mind that if I died before I took full advantage of her efforts, it wouldn’t be any different from the death that had been planned for me before she saved me. It would be empty. The feeling of something missing would overcome any sadness and replace it with a long dismissed yearning. The journey that Kura had graciously offered me was one to fill that missing aspect of my life, to find the horizons I yearned for and live my new life to its fullest. Dying early was in no way part of the future I now had planned.

“How else can I stop them from taking Zeff’s ship!?”

“Gin, quit stalling and shoot the man!”

Krieg’s voice stopped the squabbling of the two fighters, and we all waited to see what would happen. Pearl was out of commission, all other Krieg pirates were in the same way or dead… The only people left to take the restaurant were Gin, Krieg, and whatever pirates were still left on the remaining fin. Holding Zeff hostage only prolonged the fight between the Krieg Pirates and those fighting for Baratie, as Pearl could no longer beat us up and Don Krieg seemed to be perfectly content to not fight in any way.

Surprisingly, Gin dropped the pistol. The firearm clattered to the ground before he jumped from the Baratie towards the wreckage of the fin where Luffy and Sanji stood.

“Gin, you swine! You dare betray my orders?!”

“I’m sorry, Don Krieg. But after all, we both owe Sanji our lives. I’ll send him to the grave with my own hands.” Gin looked towards Sanji as he said this, a pair of metal tonfa tipped with a heavy iron balls around the size of cannonballs were held in his hands.

“Have you lost your mind, Battle Commander of the Pirate Armada?

“Battle Commander?”

Sanji’s question echoed my own thoughts exactly. The cook seemed to have known Gin for a longer time, but it seems that we both only thought of him as an underling and not one of the higher ups in Krieg’s crew.

“I wanted you to leave this ship unhurt, but I guess that’s not going to happen.

“You got that right.”

“Then the best I can offer you is killing you with myself.”

“Thanks.” Sanji sighed as he lit another cigarette, dropping the old one on the floor before snuffing it out with his shoe, “Eat worms, Gin.”

“Silver eyes, you should’ve jumped ship before you started fighting someone else’s battle.”

Our eyes met as he spoke, and once I was sure my voice wouldn’t waver, I replied, “I would’ve, but I have a thing against people breaking their word.”

Gin didn’t seem too pleased at my words, guilt clouding his face for a second. I smirked as I realized that he was still hung up on his captain attacking Baratie when he promised to leave quietly after eating. It was probably the reason he wanted to fight Sanji himself and released chef Zeff from his hostage situation. Yeah, it was definitely hard to believe that the sleep deprived man could be the Battle Commander with what I’ve seen so far.

“You too, Straw Hat. You should’ve left with your crewmates.”

“Why? I won’t lose to weaklings like you.” Tension filled the air at Luffy’s straightforward words, “I mean, you’re not all that strong, there’s just a lot of you.”

Sanji let a small smile spread across his face as Gin grew visibly angry, “Oh boy, you hit them where it hurts.”

“Because it’s true.”

“The outcome will tell us who’s strong and who’s weak, boy.” Don Krieg smirked as he continued, “Gin. Finishing off that cook and the girl is your responsibility. I’ll take care of that naïve idiot.”

“Understood, Don Krieg.”

My lips curled downwards into a frown at the thought of fighting on the broken fighting deck. There was no way I could be of any use in battle when I still couldn’t even move my own body. My legs were still unwilling to straighten themselves, and my fingertips still clung to the grooves of the wooden boards. Cursing my heightened fear of the sea, I willed one hand to grab hold of Kikoeru. My body listened, only because of the soothing hum Kikoeru vibrated into my back as I unlatched my fingers from the floor. When my fingers encircled Kikoeru I felt a little apprehension lift from my heart, the weapon reassuring me of my strength. But still my body refused to tempt the wreckage from shifting by standing.

“Mademoiselle, let me take care of things from here on out.”

Surprised at the hand that suddenly extended itself towards me, my eyes flashed up to meet Sanji’s gentle smile. There was still some blood that he had failed to wipe away, but I noticed that he held his unbloodied hand to help me up.

“Uh…?”

A little confused at his actions, my brow furrowed and I made no move to grab his hand. He had been angry at my refusal to stand still, hadn’t he? The terse tone, the hand on my shoulder… How had that changed so rapidly?

His smile widened a little as he knelt down in front of me, leaning towards me to whisper to me without the others overhearing.

“Mademoiselle, a man never holds a grudge against a woman. And I’ve already told you, haven’t I? I’ll take care of the leftovers.” He leaned in closer to me, his next words whispered into my ear, “Besides, you’re trembling Mademoiselle. You’re afraid of the ocean, aren’t you?”

My heart thundered in my ears as I realized he was right. It was subtle, but there nonetheless. A tremor that consumed my body and held me captive in my current, frightened, predicament. I wanted to revoke his observation, but I remained wordless and simply worked on calming myself down and reducing the slight shaking of my body. Sanji grabbed my hand in his slowly, giving me ample time to pull away, but I didn’t. I couldn’t.

“I… I suppose you can fight Gin first. Just so you know: If you die, I’ll be taking over.”

He chuckled quietly at this, slowly standing up and bringing me with him, overriding my body’s refusal to stand with his help. My body seemed to wake from a long sleep as I stood, my hand clinging to his a little more desperately than I would’ve cared to admit, and I finally regained some control over its actions. He walked me to the edge of the wreckage, using his long legs to reach over to the Baratie and move the part we were standing on close enough to close the gap between the two.

“There’ll be no need for that, Mademoiselle. Just take care of the damn geezer and his shitty cooks, alright? I’ve got this under control.”

Nodding at him, I squeezed his hand gently before letting it go and jumping over the railing of the Baratie. Relief flooded through my body and I let out a deep breath I didn’t know I was holding. I moved myself as far away from the railing I could go, my shoulder brushing up against the wooden walls of the restaurant, before I looked back.

Sanji was walking back towards the main piece of the broken fin where Gin and Luffy were standing, a happy aura exuding from his body as he held his hand and twirled back to his original position. For some reason it seemed that the dandy long-legs had blood running from his nose, but I brushed it off as just the blood that still clung to his face.

Shrugging the exchange off, I quickly made my way over to chef Zeff and the unconscious cooks that had remained behind on this side of Baratie. One had been knocked out by Pearl, the other had been taken out by Gin.

“Hey, brat! I’ll make you fully experience the true power that conquered the East Blue. I’ll teach you that your Devil Fruit or whatever it is means nothing.”

“Man, all your grumbling’s getting annoying… I’ll kick your ass. It’s as simple as that.”

Ignoring the rest of the commotion on the wrecked fin, I focused on what I could do until one of the Baratie fighters died. There wasn’t much to do. Moving the cooks out of harm’s way seemed to be the best start, and checking on the other fighting deck was probably a good idea as well. After all, I haven’t heard much from that side since Patty and Carne joined the fight.

“You held up alright out there, kid.”

Chef Zeff had sat himself up, keeping his eyes on the fight as he spoke to me. I took Kikoeru off my back, leaning it up against the inside wall of the Baratie before grabbing the arms of one of the cooks lying nearby.

“Better than you, chef Zeff.” Heaving the cook into the restaurant and laying him on the floor two tables away from the entrance, making sure that he wasn’t directly in line with the broken doors in case anything happened, “Although, that kick of yours was pretty cool.”

Making my way back to the other cook I could hear chef Zeff chuckling quietly, “Hm… I could say the same thing about that weapon of yours, girl.”

As I grabbed the arms of the other cook, he continued, “And I thought that I had two brats who were going to drive off the pirates so I wouldn’t waste my time fighting.”

Chuckling myself, I replied as I dragged the cook to join the other inside the Baratie, “And I thought that you were a strong pirate in the past. Besides, as long as the pirates are driven off in the end I did what I said I would do. You should’ve renegotiated your terms if you were unhappy with them.”

As I walked back to chef Zeff, I grabbed one of the dining chairs and moved it so that it was a few feet inside of the restaurant, but you could still see the battle waging on the wreck of the fin and flagship.

“I forgot about the past. I’m just the owner of a restaurant now.” He didn’t hesitate to grab the arm I extended to him in order to help him inside and onto the chair, “And I wasn’t expecting to have a discerning lady such as yourself offer to help fight.”

Grabbing Kikoeru from where I left it, I paused and watched Luffy attempting to get to Don Krieg and Sanji and Gin seemingly evenly matched.

“You didn’t seem to mind, chef Zeff.”

“No, I don’t. It’s refreshing to see someone like you. It’s been a while since I’ve seen someone with their priorities in order and their heads screwed on right.” He chuckled, leaning back in the chair as he continued watching the commotion on the waters, “It seems I’ve been meeting a lot of unusual people recently.”

I hummed in agreement, and then walked past him towards the other fin of the Baratie.

“I’m going to see how this side of the Baratie is faring. If you see any trouble while I do so, just holler and I’ll come running.”

Without waiting for his reply, I opened the doors as one hand closed itself around Kikoeru. There was no one left standing, bodies covered the deck, some breathing and some not. With a sigh, I leaned Kikoeru against the Baratie and tightened the ponytail that kept my hair from falling into my face. One after the other, I dragged the chefs into the Baratie and put them next to the others. Some of the cooks could stand, and walked with me. Only the two known as Patty and Carne seemed fit enough to walk by themselves, and they helped me move the cooks inside.

“We had dealt with all the pirates, but then Gin came by and took out those of us that were still standing. He took a gun-“

“Ah, so that’s where he got it. Gin took chef Zeff hostage and broke his peg leg. Sanji’s fighting him now, and Luffy’s going up against Don Krieg.”

With those words they quickly finished moving the cooks inside and went to stand by Zeff. Making my way back to recollect Kikoeru, a sharp pain made itself known on my leg. Looking down to see what had caused it, I saw one of the pirates with a small knife in his hands, a little blood dripping down the blade. He laughed loudly, proud of the fact that he had given me a small gash on my right shin, hardly larger than a papercut after the blade struggled to cut through my boot. With a scowl, said boot collided with his face, knocking him out as I grabbed Kikoeru.

Raising Kikoeru, I pointed the blade at the pirate’s back, seconds away from taking the man’s life.

“Sanji?!”

“H-he’s a goner! He can’t even take the shock of his own attacks!”

The sound of Patty and Carne’s voices drew my attention from the man, and having lost interest, I entered Baratie and closed the doors behind me. Seeing Patty and Carne standing beside Zeff, I wandered over to them, taking a second to count the number of cooks that had been brought into the restaurant. All the cooks seemed to be alive, at least. Even with varying injuries and wounds peppering their bodies, there was something to be said about the fighting cooks of Baratie.

I stood beside the cook with sunglasses – whether it was Patty or Carne, I couldn’t say – and looked out onto the wreckage. Gin was kneeling over Sanji’s body, one hand around the cook’s throat and the other holding the tonfa that rested on his shoulder. However, I didn’t have time to be concerned over Sanji’s safety, as the Battle Commander started crying and made no move to land a killing blow on the dandy long-legs.

“I can’t, Don Krieg. I can’t kill this man!” He let go of Sanji’s throat, his tonfa falling off of his shoulder and hitting the fighting deck with a _thunk_.

“What did you say?!”

“For the first time in my life… No one had treated me kindly before! This man was kind to me! I can’t kill this man!” Gin didn’t look at Krieg as he spoke, “Don Krieg… if circumstances allow… is there any way that… this ship could be spared?”

Mummers rippled through the waters as the few living pirates spoke amongst themselves about the actions of their commander, apparently not unconscious anymore.

“You son of a bitch! As if defying my orders isn’t enough, now you’re giving me a lecture?! What’s the meaning of this madness!?” Krieg removed his shoulder piece and pointed it towards Baratie, the skull and crossbones of the Krieg Pirates painted on the armour piece, “How disappointing, that my most trusted officer refuses to obey my orders. Morality, sympathy… I hate those kinds of things the most. **Drop your gas mask, Gin! You are no longer part of this crew**.”

Don Krieg growled his order at Gin, and looking around at the surviving pirates, most had placed gas masks over their faces in preparation for the captain’s next attack. Gin also pulled out his gas mask, looking at it as Krieg commanded him to drop it once again.

“You think I’d let you shoot that poison gas?!”

Luffy ran across the fallen mast that connected the fin’s wreckage to that of the flagship, but before he could get far Krieg broke the mast on his side with a punch. Luffy had no choice but to return to the fighting deck as the mast started to sink into the seawater.

“Might makes right, boy! No matter what foul play or underhanded measures taken, winning is all that matters! _That_ is power, anchor boy.”

“Gin! You don’t have to listen to what that weakling says! I’m gonna clobber him!”

“Don’t belittle Don Krieg!” Gin shouted at Luffy, before his voice lowered, “He is the mightiest man alive. A runt like you could never defeat him.”

“Wake up, you idiot! That man is trying to kill you!” Sanji grabbed into Gin’s arm as he said this, shaking the man back and forth as if willing the Battle Commander to come to his senses. But Gin was unfazed.

“Of course he is. I’m a coward who let foolish sentiment get in the way of duty!” He threw the gas mask away, “This is a well-deserved punishment!”

The mask fell into the water, quickly getting engulfed by the dangerous depths.

“Deadly poison gas bomb! MH5!”

Krieg launched the bomb from his shoulder guard, and as it came flying towards the Baratie I readied Kikoeru, stepping in front of Zeff as the two cooks pulled his chair backwards. The door had been broken, so there was no way to keep the gas out by normal means. Before the bomb hit the wreckage, Luffy’s arms stretched and pulled the gas masks off of two pirates before they dived into the ocean and threw the devices at Gin and Sanji. But by the time Luffy went looking for one of his own, the pirates had all vanished under the water.

**Ka-Fwoosh!**

The bomb exploded, and a large cloud of purple coloured smoke filled the air. Acting quickly, I spun Kikoeru in front of me, activating my Devil Fruit powers as I created winds that followed the spinning weapon. Just as the gas started creeping towards the entrance of the Baratie, I guided the winds outwards, blowing the gas back towards Don Krieg. Expanding the area of the wind, the destroyed fighting deck was soon cleared of the noxious gas.

Once I was certain that the fumes wouldn’t return – and thankfully the natural wind was blowing towards Krieg – I stopped Kikoeru’s motion. Gin was kneeling over Sanji, his skin turned an odd purple colour as he forced a gas mask onto Sanji. The one that Luffy had thrown him lay unused and out of reach, and my eyes located him easily. The straw hat pirate looked okay, even without a gas mask he had held his breath long enough for me to clear the gas away before he breathed it in.

“Gin! Get off me!”

The man was unresponsive, and after a few more seconds of forcing the gas mask down onto Sanji, his body jerked and he coughed up blood. He had only breathed in a few seconds of the gas, and he was still on the brink of death… I’d hate to see what would’ve happened if the gas had simply faded away on its own – surely Luffy couldn’t have held his breath that long.

“Gin!”

Luffy ran towards Sanji and Gin, and I followed soon after. Leaving Kikoeru behind on the Baratie, I took tentative steps towards the edge of the restaurant’s deck before jumping down onto the wreckage. Making sure to land as far as I could onto the wooden structure, I quickly made my way towards the trio.

“Hahaha! What a fool! You’re in pain right now because you feel indebted just because someone gave you a little food. The only cure for fools is death.”

Gin was gasping for breath by the time I had reached him, and the anger that emanated from both Sanji and Luffy consumed the air. Unsure of what to do with poison, I did the only thing I thought might help: I placed the gas mask that Sanji had used onto Gin’s face. Sanji, who was holding Gin’s shaking body, held the mask in place as I stood up and called Patty and Carne over with a wave of my hand. We had to get both Gin and Sanji off of the fighting deck and onto Baratie. Perhaps Zeff knew what to do with poisons…

“Don… Don Krieg…”

“Gin… it seems that you picked the wrong man to follow.”

Sanji glared at Krieg as he spoke, and Luffy clenched his teeth together as he did the same.

“You feel sorry for that worthless piece of rubbish!? A fool who lost sight of what was important and refused to obey my orders… is of no use to me. Who’s to say he won’t betray me again? Killing him like this is a kindness.”

Luffy’s fists clenched and he looked like he was about to charge at Don Krieg at any moment. Patty and Carne made their way onto the fighting deck, and Zeff made an appearance underneath the doorway of the Baratie, a cook helping him stand.

“Good, there’s a gas mask on him. That should have some sort of detoxifying effect. Patty, Carne, carry him to the upper deck and make him take deep breaths, that’s the only chance of saving him.”

Patty and Carne carefully lifted Gin from Sanji’s arms, and I followed quickly after them. Hopping up onto the Baratie, making sure to give myself a lot of distance from the water at both leaving the broken fin and touching down on the deck, I heard Krieg and Luffy speaking.

“What a waste of time. He won’t live another hour.”

“Don’t you dare die, Gin. Don’t let that jerk kill you! Live to spite him, okay?! I’ll send him flying!”

Luffy looked serious, his voice was even and tempered with anger.

“D-don’t go against Krieg…”

Gin’s feeble attempts to stop Luffy went unheard, and as he was carried up to the second floor by Patty and Carne, I hung back as I grabbed Kikoeru.

“Calm down, chore boy! If you charge in, you’ll be playing right into his hands! You’ll be killed.” Sanji grabbed the captain’s arm, but his grip was quickly brushed off with his reply.

“I won’t die.”

“Yes you will, anchor boy. You and then that annoying little girl!”

Hearing enough of his words, I entered the Baratie, focusing my attention on treating the wounded cooks while Patty and Carne took care of Gin. Luffy could handle Don Krieg. There was nothing to support the claim, but somehow I believed he would be able to do it. The straw hat knew no fear, he wouldn’t stop until Don Krieg had been defeated.

With that thought, I went to work and scrounged up the materials I could find to temporarily bandage who I could. Some clean tablecloths and a first aid kit were hidden inside the cupboards beneath the spiral staircase. Most of the cooks didn’t have any life-threatening wounds, but I dealt with the more severe ones first. Cutting some cloth for bandages with the small pair of scissors in the first aid kit, I wrapped the cloth around the bloody skin. Careful not to tie the cloth too tightly, I repeated the process for every cut I found on the cooks.

Soon enough, they all seemed to be taken care of. Running upstairs and opening doors until I found the kitchen, I chose a large bowl to fill with water. Turning off the water when I figured there was just enough liquid in the bowl to not slosh itself out when I headed down the spiral stairs, I paused by the window and looked out towards the fight between Luffy and Don Krieg.

Luffy had blood running down his arms and legs, his hand looking especially bad, but Don Krieg was on the ground. The cape of spikes he wore seemingly no match for the aspiring Pirate King. With a small smile spreading itself over my face, I continued down the stairs and set the bowl of water on a nearby table. Collecting all of the glasses that I could find of various shapes and sizes, I started scooping the water into them. Some cooks were conscious, and so I handed them some of the glasses and received a tired ‘thanks’ in return.

“Once in a long while, a fool comes along, Sanji. One who, having his sights on something, won’t stop fighting ‘til he dies.” Zeff’s voice echoed through the restaurant as he spoke to Sanji, “It’s a real nuisance to have a feller like that for an enemy. Whether he wins or loses this fight, I can admire a man like that.”

Luffy was certainly that kind of person. A fool, but one who won’t stop until he can’t continue any longer. Not until the bones in his body are broken, not until his muscles give up on him, not until his blood is no longer in his body. Not until death. Just like that swordsman of his.

“Heh. What a scary group of pirates…”

Explosions sounded from outside, and the Baratie swayed slightly as it floated over the waves that cradled it. More explosions sounded rapidly one after the other.

“You can go and watch the fight, miss.” One of the less injured cooks seemed to take note of my interest, and before I could object he continued, “We’ll take care of them when they wake up.”

Nodding silently to the man, I walked out of Baratie once again and ran my fingers down Kikoeru. It hummed in appreciation and then remained silent as I took in the scene before me. Zeff had sent the cook that had helped him away, a chair now taking his place as he sat and the end of the ship’s dock. Sanji had moved closer to the Baratie, but still remained seated on the wreckage. As I stood next to Zeff’s chair, keenly aware of the water that sloshed against the ship, he dipped his head slightly to greet me.

Luffy seemed to be faring well against Don Krieg, yet he was pretty beat up. His skin was scorched as a result of the explosions I had heard, and he was losing a lot of blood. But he still had a giant grin on his face as he faced Don Krieg, who looked a little worse for wear.

“In the life-and-death struggles of a pirate, if you fear death for even a moment you’ll fall to pieces. Is it a survival instinct? Or does he not fear death because he has faith in himself?” Krieg swung a large spear around as chef Zeff spoke, “Whichever it is, I’ll say this for our chore boy, Sanji. There’s no give to him. And in the end, grit counts more than steel.”

Another explosion sounded as Luffy was hit by Don Krieg’s spear. Again and again, Luffy was hit by the exploding spear, but he never failed to stand up. However, every time he was hit, I noticed that Luffy was punching the spear. Soon enough the spear’s tip had been broken off, much to Don Krieg’s surprise.

“M-my Mighty Battle Spear is… What the hell did you do?!”

“I gave it a few punches. I guess that’s it for your spear, prepare yourself!” Luffy grinned at him, “With a foothold this size, you’re going down!”

True enough, the two pirates were on one of the largest pieces of wreckage the flagship left behind. A large flat area with a mast still standing upright was now their battlefield. With this, Luffy could fight without worrying about the ocean.

“Give up! The moment you defied me, you signed your death warrant!”

Don Krieg charged at Luffy with his blade-less spear, but Luffy dodged easily as he stretched and grabbed onto the mast, pulling himself upwards and away from the explosion that followed. Krieg hit the mast, breaking its base and sending it crashing to the sea. Luffy broke off a piece of the mast and sent it flying towards Krieg, but the latter disintegrated the piece of wood with a hidden flamethrower.

“Is there any weapon he doesn’t have hidden somewhere?” My question went unanswered as we all waited to see what Luffy would do next.

“Gum-Gum Gatling Gun! And… Gum-Gum Pistol!”

A flurry of punches found their way to Krieg’s chest followed by a powerful punch, yet it merely skidded the man back a few feet as he taunted the straw hat, “This is wootz steel armour! You can’t even dent it!”

Krieg jumped up onto what was left of the mast, sending bomb down towards Luffy, “I’m the world’s strongest man, armed with the best equipment! That, anchor boy, is my military might! Whoever opposes me dies!”

Luffy, undeterred by his threats, stretched his arms back as he ran up the mast. However, Krieg was waiting for him and attacked with his explosive spear as soon as Luffy got into his range. But that still didn’t stop him.

“Gum-Gum Bazooka!” Luffy’s attack made contact with Krieg, sending him flying from the mast. But he didn’t move after that, his body registering the impact of the last explosion and paralyzing him with the pain.

“You failed! Your strength is gone! But, you did manage to put a crack in my armour in the end!” Krieg laughed as he started falling through the air, the bombs he had dropped blowing up the foothold that Luffy had, “Die with pride, anchor boy!”

“Chore boy!” Sanji called out, but his voice was surely lost with the loud explosions that destroyed the wooden platforms and sent a ripple through the water that rocked the Baratie.

The second the waves reached the restaurant, I held onto the railing tightly, my eyes searching through the smoke and water that concealed the battle from me. A few heart pounding moments pass, but soon Luffy’s voice called out,

“ **Gum-Gum Bazooka!** ”

“Luffy!” Relief flooded my system as I saw Luffy attacking Don Krieg, his armour breaking from the impact and blood escaping his body from his mouth. But the relief didn’t last long.

“ **Anchor boy, you’ve made me angry**!!” A net came from Don Krieg, catching Luffy in it as they plunged towards the ocean, “You lose, anchor boy! All I have to do is toss you into the ocean and I get the last laugh, as I knew I would!”

However, before Krieg could celebrate his victory for long, Luffy stuck his legs out from the net and twisted them along the net until he had grabbed hold of the pirate. Then Luffy started to unwind his legs, spinning Don Krieg around rapidly until the man crashed into the fight deck.

“Gum-Gum… Giant Gavel!”

The battle was over. Don Krieg was knocked unconscious by Luffy’s last attack, but the pirate fell into the water without the energy to use another move to save himself. A moment passed, the admiration for the simple pirate growing as I witnessed his excruciatingly stubborn power. He could’ve quit multiple times, could’ve stayed down and lost the battle… Yet he didn’t. He pushed and pushed, until his enemy gave way. Chef Zeff was right: there’s no give to the future Pirate King. However, my thoughts were interrupted as I realized the peril Luffy was in.

“Sanji! Luffy can’t swim! He’ll sink if you don’t save him!”

“What?!”

Sanji snapped out of his trance and ran towards the edge of the fighting deck, taking off his jacket and kicking of his shows before diving into the ocean after the pirate. Movement caught my eye, and I looked over the edge of the railing. Luffy’s straw hat was bumping up against the ship, and before the waves could take it away I flattened myself against the deck and stuck my hand out over the side of the ship.

“That kid’s grit… was enough to take down Don Krieg’s fancy weapons and military might.”

Chef’s Zeff’s voice sounded as my fingertips touched the brim of the hat, dipping into the warm salty waters slightly to grab hold of it.

“Yeah… he’s something else, isn’t he?” Pulling my arm back towards me, I twirled the hat in my hands and stood up, leaning against the railing once more.

“I know a fool who’s chewing a spear of his own… For no good reason.”

I looked at chef Zeff, who was still staring out to the spot where Sanji dived into the water. So Sanji had something he wants to chase after?

“The restaurant?”

“Yeah. That stupid brat refuses to leave…”

“Well, what’re you going to do about it?” He turned and looked at me, a hint of a smile ghosting his tired face as I continued, “I mean, Luffy seems pretty keen on getting a cook for his crew, you seem set on sending Sanji away… Why not try to convince him to leave?”

Zeff laughed loudly, and it was a few moments before he had calmed down and replied, “I might just do that.”

The chef then beckoned me over, and I leant him my shoulder as he stood up and started walking towards the restaurant. It wasn’t until he was sat down on one of the dining room chairs, and I accepted his unspoken invitation to sit with him, that he spoke any further.

“By the way, I don’t think I caught your name.”

“It’s Kailina.”

“Well, Kailina, have you thought about how you’re going to see your horizons?”

The question surprised me, and I took a few moments to think about it as I looked around the restaurant. Most of the cooks had come to and started moving around again. Patty and Carne were running in and out of the restaurant, probably dealing with the pirates that were still outside Baratie’s doors.

“I’m going to find a crew to take me to the Grand Line with them.”

“Oh, I see.” A few moments passed in silence as we watched the Baratie come back to life, bustling with activity as the healthier cooks started preparing a late lunch to help everyone recuperate from the battle.

From the corner of my eye, I could see a small boat sailing away from the Baratie. Squinting my eyes at the figures on board, I could see Gin and some of the other Krieg Pirates on board.

“-thought about it?” My attention snapped back towards Zeff.

“What?”

“Have you thought about joining that brat’s crew?”

“What, Luffy’s?”

I blinked, not having thought about the option before. His crew had what, five members in it? Luffy himself, Zoro the swordsman, Usopp the sniper, this ‘Nami’ girl who stole their ship, and I’m sure that Sanji would become their cook sooner or later. The first two mentioned were certainly strong, and so was Sanji… Would I be able to join a crew like that? A _pirate crew_? Surely they were only looking for the strongest members if Luffy was going to become the Pirate King, and I was nowhere near their level of strength. Sure, I had trained hard during the last three months under Kura’s critical eyes, but there was no comparison for the years that Luffy and Zoro had no doubt undergone. It was impossible.

“Well, no matter. You still have time to figure it out I suppose. I’ll just say this: I think you’d fit in nicely with those pirates.”

A small laugh escaped me when I realized that I didn’t even need to ask myself if I _wanted_ to join. I did. I wanted to be counted as one of their crew members so badly that my heart sunk a little when I thought about the chances of it actually happening. If only I was stronger…

My thoughts trailed off as I saw Sanji enter the Baratie with Luffy hanging over his shoulder. Standing up, I walked over to the cook quickly, “Sanji! How are you feeling? How is he?”

“Oh, mademoiselle! It’s so nice to hear you concerned over me~! But you have no need to worry, I heal quickly~” He looked over his shoulder at the red-vested captain, “The idiot’s fine, he’s just sleeping. I’m going to take him upstairs to rest for a little while. Gin and the others left too.”

I nodded, hesitating slightly before speaking to him again, “We’ll probably be leaving after the cooks prepare some food, if that’s alright. Oh, and apparently I haven’t had time to introduce myself. My name is Kailina, it’s nice to meet you.”

Blood trickled down Sanji’s face as a nosebleed made itself known. Luffy’s body fell to the floor with a _thud_ as Sanji knelt down before me, one hand pressed to his chest while the other one grabbed my hand gently.

“Oh, mademoiselle! I can feel my heart race when you speak to me so cutely, Kailina is a name befitting a goddess such as you~! You can stay as long as you like, my dear!”

Nervous laughter came from my lips as a smile spread across my face when I realized how quickly I was getting used to the flirty nature the cook had.  But, I still slipped my hand out of his and clasped it around Kikoeru to prevent him from grabbing them again. He noticed this, and stood up after throwing Luffy over his shoulder again.

“Oh, you should get your cut cleaned up, mademoiselle.”

“Cut?”

“Yeah, on your cheek.”

My hand brought itself up to touch my cheek, the feeling of dried blood meeting my fingertips. My thoughts drifted back to the sting I had felt on my cheek when Krieg had fired a pistol at me. My fingertips ran over the raw skin that indicated the place where the bullet had broken the skin as it passed.

Sanji walked passed me as he saw the realization light my eyes, and I returned to my seat across from Zeff with a wet piece of cloth in my hand as I cleaned the blood from my face. With the cut on my cheek and right shin, and the bruise that no doubt already blossomed into a deep purple on both my stomach and arm, I’d have to say my first battle was a success.

“I don’t think I’d mind, chef Zeff.” Taking Kikoeru off of my back, I also washed off what little blood had stained the weapon with the cloth, “I don’t think I would mind being on Luffy’s crew at all.”

All that there was left to do now is to wait for Luffy to wake up and head after Nami and Luffy’s ship. In that time, I could only hope to find a place on the straw hat’s crew.


	10. Jumping Ship!

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 10: Jumping Ship!

It had been a half hour, and the mouth-watering smell of food prepared by Baratie’s fighting cooks had drifted into the restaurant. The dining room of said restaurant was relatively empty, as I was the only one sitting at one of the tables. My eyes followed the occasional cook bursting through the closed doors, running back and forth from the damaged areas of the Baratie.

The broken doors had been repaired to an extent, but the cooks were very careful with opening and closing them. But, their version of ‘careful’ resulted in the doors being broken again, and eventually Patty and Carne came down and decided to leave the doors open until they could fix them properly. Thankfully the weather was warm and the cool wind was more than welcome as it blew through the restaurant. I’m sure the sentiment might change drastically if a storm makes itself known to the sea-faring restaurant before the doors are fixed, though.

Chuckling quietly to myself, I turned my attention back towards the map I had spread out on the table. It hadn’t changed since I arrived; the names of islands still faded and some left unnamed, my destination still unknown. But instead of trying to chart my own course, I was no trying to figure out where Nami’s course could’ve taken her. From what I heard from the cooks, the pirate ship and my own had passed them by on the other fin – heading towards the Conomi Islands, where I came from. While the direction which the cooks pointed to was a straight line towards the largest island, where Cocoyashi and Gosa village were located, the Straw Hat navigator could’ve easily changed course and headed to the smaller islands…

I sighed, my fingers rubbing circles into my temples as I tried to imagine the path Nami took. Where was she going? Was she going to change course? What if the straight line is just a distraction? Is she stopping somewhere along the way? Somewhere that she could hide the ship?

Another sigh escaped me as I took a sip from the glass of water Zeff had gotten me before he left. There wasn’t enough information to make a decision at this point. The only thing we could do is wait for the others to return to Baratie to tell us where Nami was heading, but that was unlikely to happen. We could always sail for Cocoyashi and Gosa, but we could miss the others if they went through the smaller islands…

“Kai-something! My hat! My straw hat!!” My eyes focused on the source of the ruckus. It wasn’t hard to pick him out, barrelling down the stairs with reckless abandon and nearly bowling over a cook that was heading upstairs.

“At least get her name right, fool! You should always make an effort to remember a beautiful woman’s name, anything less is unacceptable for a man!” Sanji was following Luffy at a languid pace, calling out to the pirate as he descended the first steps as Luffy raced towards me.

Lifting the hat in the air, I laughed quietly as his eyes lit up as soon as he spotted it. It was as if the hat meant more to him than any pile of gold that could be found in treasure chests. The moment Luffy reached me the hat was taken out of my hands and secured onto its rightful place as he grinned with happiness. There was so many stories and adventures the pirate before me had been on already, so much freedom and carefree gestures that would lead him to a great many more.

Briefly wondering at my chances of actually hearing these stories, I spoke, “It’s Kailina, nice to meet you officially. And I thought I told you to be careful with your hat!”

“Sorry, sorry!”

With the grin he gave me, I could only assume that the second he feels like blasting off he would forget about his hat and my words of caution. But before I could say anything else, my hand found itself in the grasp of the dandy long-legs.

“Mademoiselle, might I just say that in the time spent away from you, you have somehow managed to become even more lovely~?”

Smiling politely, I stood up and took my hand from Sanji’s feather-light grip.

“Guys, meal time!”

A bell rang out from upstairs, and I could see the feet of the cook who called out as he stood on the spiral staircase. He turned and headed back towards where the cooks were eating.

“Food! C’mon, Kaili!”

Getting dragged along by Luffy, I took the stairs two at a time to keep up with the pirate. Sanji was following me closely, and by the time we reached the door that led into the room where the cooks ate their food Sanji had gotten in front of us and opened the door. There were two long tables in the room, a third smaller one was off to the side and covered with food. All of the cooks seemed to be already eating, and there were no seats left for the three of us.

“Hey, where do we sit?”

“Where’s our food?”

“Should I even be here? I’m not an employee, you know…”

None of the cooks seemed to acknowledge us, still focused on their food, and I thought they wouldn’t answer until voices sounded from somewhere in the room.

“There’re no chairs for you.”

“Hehe… Sit on the floor and eat.”

Luffy shrugged, and headed towards the food table. Sanji muttered under his breath and soon followed. I hovered by the door, still debating whether or not I should enter. They didn’t say anything that would indicate I wasn’t wanted, and they didn’t even acknowledge my question…

Satisfied with my reasoning, I closed the door behind me and walked towards the two I came in with. Luffy was piling meat onto his plate, but after a scolding from Sanji he also added a few vegetables to his tray as well. The latter passed me a plate and I could feel him carefully scanning over my choices, offering a tip or two on how to get the most nutrients, ‘even though you’ll have to put up with inferior cooking.’. Luffy and I waited as Sanji skillfully filled his tray with a balance of the offered foods.

Luffy and I followed Sanji as he sat down near the door we entered from, letting out a breath as he did so. We both followed suit.

“Guess we can’t help it…”

“Those guys are acting strange…” Luffy was looking towards the cooks as he spoke, and I would’ve been concerned over their behaviour if it wasn’t Luffy who mentioned it. Sanji didn’t seemed bothered by their actions, though.

“Strange is normal for them.”

The quiet growl that my stomach let out indicated just how hungry I was, and I decided to shrug off the conversation and eat the delicious smelling food in front of me. The peace didn’t last long.

“Hey, who prepared the soup?” The cook I had come to know as Patty after the battle stood up as he spoke, slamming his spoon onto the table as he did so.

Judging by the tone of his voice, I thought that he didn’t like it. Having no soup of my own to taste – forgoing that option at the food table due to my dislike of soup – my brow furrowed as Sanji answered him enthusiastically.

“Oh, I did! Delicious, isn’t it? It’s an especially good batch.”

“I can’t eat damn nasty soup like this! What is this, pig feed!?”

The expression on Sanji’s face changed drastically as Patty wiped his mouth and pretended to spit out the remaining taste of the soup. The sounds of people eating quieted except for that coming from Luffy and myself, both of us keenly watching the scene unfold as we filled our stomachs.

“Is human food not to your liking, crap-raccoon?” Sanji stood as he tucked his hands into the pockets of his pants.

“Hmph. It takes talent to make something this foul.”

“I’d stake my reputation on that soup. You have an undiscerning palate.”

Sanji started advancing towards Patty, and as the tension in the room grew my fingers reached behind me out of habit. Kikoeru was left downstairs, forgotten as Luffy dragged me along, and I tentatively called out to it. It responded warmly, and my hand returned to my lap.

“This is nasty!” Carne voiced his opinion on the soup, stopping Sanji in his tracks.

Throughout the room sounds of disgust coupled with spoons being slammed onto the table made themselves known, and I could see Sanji getting angrier as the show went on.

“What’s gotten into you crap-apes!?”

The cooks all turned towards Sanji as he spoke.

“You’re a phony sous chef after all…”

“You’re a hack!”

“I’m sick of being bullied by you!”

The conversation which would’ve turned into a fight, had Sanji had his way, quieted instantly as chef Zeff spoke, “We’re sea-faring cooks. Don’t waste even a drop of soup.”

After finishing his soup in silence, Zeff stood and shattered his bowl on the ground.

“What is this crap-awful sludge? If we serve muck like this to our customers, our restaurant will go out of business!”

  “Don’t be ridiculous, shitty geezer!” Sanji stormed up to Zeff, grabbing the man by his shirt, “How’s your soup different from this one?! Well?!”

“My soup?” Zeff frowned, “Don’t flatter yourself!”

Chef Zeff then punched Sanji in the head, causing ripples of surprise from the cooks.

“Chef… Punched him?”

“He didn’t kick…”

But all of the cooks, now unable to hide their interest in the scene, went silent as soon as Zeff spoke to the sous chef on the ground before him.

“You’ll never be able to cook like me, baby eggplant! I’m a man who has cooked on seas around the world. It’ll be a billion years before you can give me a lecture on cooking, brat!

Sanji stood, but said nothing to the chef. He let out a curse and left the employee dining room, slamming the door shut behind him. I stared at the door for a few more seconds, briefly wondering if someone should follow him, but I quickly discarded that idea. If anyone was to go chasing after him, it wouldn’t be me. Besides, he’ll probably come back once he’s cooled off.

“But this soup is really good!”

Luffy had gotten up and collected more soup from its container, drinking the soup in large gulps before filling his bowl again. The cooks, who had been staring out the window in order to catch a glimpse of Sanji as he ran, turned their attention to the pirate captain.

“We know that.” Zeff spoke, and I immediately connected their display for the ‘push’ to get Sanji to leave, “Sanji’s cooking skills are recognized by everyone here.”

“We all know that Sanji’s a great chef.”

“Yeah, the soup is very well made.”

“But man, does our sous chef have a temper!”

“He seriously snapped, huh? That was scary…”

The tension in the air was quickly replaced by the laughs that came from the cooks, and the comments didn’t stop.

“That was a mean thing the chef made us do.”

“I sweated through my jacket!”

“I was worried that he might figure it out because of Patty’s bad acting.”

“You’re acting was horrible too, Carne!”

 “Gimme more of that soup!”

The cooks all gathered around the soup bowl, and Luffy was slowly pushed out of the way. He walked back over to me and sat down again, watching the cooks with a small frown on his face.

Of course, the only thing that would upset this man would be food.

“If we don’t do something like this, he won’t listen!” Zeff joined us, returning to his seat only a few feet away from where we were sitting as he spoke, “Hey kid, you were saying that you wanted a cook for your ship, right?”

“Yeah, I want a cook before we head to the Grand Line.”

“This isn’t a favour that I’d like to ask of you or anything… But would you take that little brat with you to the Grand Line?” A smile spread across the man’s face, “The Grand Line… is his dream.”

“No way.”

And once again, Luffy managed to surprise me. Of course he would say no to the employer of the cook he’s wanted for his crew onto his ship, when asked to take him. Of course. Honestly, I’m surprised that I didn’t see it coming before. Luffy truly had no give to him: it was either his way, or no way. He didn’t let his life be dictated by another. He never did anything that he didn’t want to do…

The type to go after what they want without thinking twice or looking back. They only looked straight ahead, eyes locked onto whatever destination their minds were set one and refusing to change course for anyone. These were the people who embodied freedom.

This was the kind of captain I wanted to follow.

“What?!”

“Why not, boy? Don’t you need a cook for your ship? Isn’t he good enough for you?” Zeff seemed to be just as confused as I was, unable to tell what Luffy was thinking.

“He’s good enough all right, and I’d love to have him as our cook. But he said he wants to stay here and continue working as a cook. You can’t decide for him, he has to do it.”

Luffy’s response made a smile spread itself across my face as I got up to get rid of my tray, as all the food on it had been eaten during the conversations. Not only was the man not willing to give up any of his own freedom, but also refused to ignore trampling over the freedom of others. It was clear why a strong man like Roronoa Zoro would choose Luffy to be his captain, as well as how he had amassed the crew he had with how little he thought things through. With what I’m seeing of Luffy’s character, my desire to join in on his adventures seems to only be growing stronger and stronger.

When I left home, the thought of becoming a pirate had only buried itself on the fringes of my mind. Kura was a pirate much like Luffy, unwilling to yield to the desires of others. She was the one to open my mind to such a thought. Despite everything that my father had to say about pirates, I was becoming increasingly confident of throwing all his warnings away due to the straw hatted captain and his crew. My smile grew wider at the thought.

No, I don’t think I’d mind if I sailed under Luffy’s Jolly Roger.

“Well, fair enough. But who knows whether that crazy crap-brat will say it himself…”

“There’s no way. He’s an idiot through and through, after all!”

“I’ve never seen you say that to his face, Carne!”

“That’s why the word ‘stubborn’ exists, Patty!”

“Hahaha! Let’s get us a second round of soup before he comes back, then!”

**_Krash!_ **

Whirling around to see what made the loud commotion, my eyes were met with Sanji lying under a man with a large fish attempting to eat him. The wall of the employee dining room had been broken through, and I idly wondered how often the Baratie cooks needed to repair their vessel.

“Sanji!”

“What is it? A Fishman?!”

“He came all the way from Fishman Island to eat our food?”

“It’s a man and a panshark, moron!”

 Listening to the cooks’ banter, I agreed that the large white and black fish was a panda shark, home to East Blue waters around the Conomi Islands.

“Hey, Yosaku!” Luffy approached the man as Sanji moved himself out from under the man-panshark combination.

Moving closer to the newcomer at Luffy’s words, I could see that the victim of the panshark was one of the men who stole my ship. The red headgear wearing man named Yosaku came to life at Luffy’s voice, reaching towards him shakily.

“Brother… Luffy!”

“Why are you alone? Where’re the others?” Luffy crouched beside Yosaku as he continued bombarding the man with questions before he could answer them, “What about Nami?!”

“And what about my ship?” Adding my own question to Luffy’s, I walked over to the panshark and placed my foot in its mouth. Leaning down, I grabbed onto the rounded nose of the shark and pulled upwards. Forced to open its mouth and release Yosaku from its jaws, I then grabbed the collar of his green jacket and pulled his body out of the panshark. Its jaws slammed shut once I removed my foot and released its nose, and it angrily writhed about.

I left the cooks to deal with the shark as I turned my attention towards Yosaku, turning him around to face me. He had a thankful grin on his face, but it quickly dropped as soon as his eyes met my glare.

“S-sister?”

“You’ll wish that panda shark ate you if my ship doesn’t make it back to me in one piece, thief.” I would’ve continued my threat had it not been imperative that we get information on Nami’s direction.

Sighing, I dragged Yosaku over to the nearest chair and sat him down before asking one of the cooks to get the water-logged man a blanket, water, and some warm food. After the cook returned with the items, Yosaku hung his jacket to dry, wrapped himself in the towel, and began talking as he ate.

“We didn’t catch up with her, but by the wake of sister Nami’s ship we figured out roughly where she was going.”

“One of the Conomi Islands, right?”

“Yeah. Sister Nami had let our ship go – mine and Johnny’s – so I took it to head back and tell brother Luffy where to go. The panda shark jumped out of the water and got me, though…”

“So if you know where she’s going, then we can go get our navigator back!”

“Well, Luffy… That’s just it. If what we’re thinking is right, she’s heading for an unbelievable place!!”

“What? The Conomi Islands are relatively peaceful compared to other places in the East Blue, where is she heading?”

“You haven’t heard, sister?” Yosaku looked like he wanted to say more, but stopped himself and turned back to Luffy, “I’ll tell you the details later! In any case, we need your help Big Bro Luffy! Come with me!”

“Okay! I don’t really get it, but I got it. Let’s go!” Luffy pointed his thumb towards me, “Kaili’s coming with us to get her ship back.” Luffy looked over to me, as if asking if what he said was right.

Nodding, I responded, “That’s right.” I then turned to Yosaku and introduced myself, “My name’s Kailina. It’s… well, it’s not very nice to meet you, so… I hope we can work together to get my ship back.”

With that said, Yosaku shed his blanket and put on his jacket and placed his silent sword on his back. Luffy stood up, and we started making our way out of the employee dining hall. After we had taken a few steps, we were stopped by Sanji’s voice.

“Wait.” I turned and saw Sanji leaning up against the wall, a new cigarette burning in his mouth, “I’ll go. Take me with you.”

Luffy looked surprised, and the same sentiment was shared with the fighting cooks.

“I might as well sail with you, seeing as we both have foolish dreams. Your journey to become King of the Pirates might just lead me to the ‘All Blue’. So, you’ve got yourself a cook.” He let out an exhale in Luffy’s silence, smoke billowed from his cigarette, “Is that okay or not okay?”

“It’s okay!” Luffy broke out into a huge grin, “Hooray!”

“This is great, brother Luffy!”

Yosaku and Luffy danced around happily at the addition to the Straw Hat crew, chants of ‘hooray’ and ‘we’ve got a cook’ came from the pair.

“So that’s how it is, everyone. Sorry for causing you all sorts of trouble.”

Sanji spoke to the cooks who watched in a stunned silence. They quickly snapped out of their daze and smirked at the dandy long-legs.

“Hmph. I was going to throw you out with my own hands.”

“And now you go and decide to jump ship! Couldn’t you have done that before you chased off a lot of our customers?”

“At least now we won’t have to worry about our sous chef beating them up anymore!”

“Your acting is shitty, guys.” The cooks immediately dropped their acts at Sanji’s words, accusing one another with their looks before the pirate cook spoke again, “You fools weren’t exactly whispering.”

“You went that far to chase me off, crap-geezer?”

“Before you go, I’m gonna teach you to talk nice, Sanji!”

Patty angrily made his way towards Sanji, but was stopped by Zeff before he could reach the sous chef.

“Hmph! That’s right, little brat! I’ve never liked kids to begin with, so not a day goes by where I don’t regret letting a useless one live.”

“Oh, yeah? Fine by me, crap-geezer. Enjoy the rest of your life.”

Sanji then walked away, heading downstairs to presumably pack up his belongings for the journey. The cooks hauled Luffy away, speaking of giving us food for the journey. Some others led Yosaku away, talking of preparing Sanji’s ship for travel. It wasn’t long before the rest of the cooks filed out, leaving to prepare the dining room for incoming patrons. And then I was left with Zeff.

To be honest, I was a little confused. Despite the harsh conversation between chef Zeff and Sanji, everyone seemed to have high spirits. Even Sanji and Zeff seemed to be unfazed, and no angry outburst had erupted between them.

“That’s just how we are, Kailina.” My eyes shot up and met Zeff’s, noticing that he was now standing in front of me.

“But… Wasn’t that a little harsh for a goodbye?”

Zeff sighed and gestured for me to follow him as he turned and walked out of the dining room, I scurried along after him.

“It might’ve been, but that boy needs a good kick in the head to set him straight. He’s as stubborn as a mule, that one. Even though he said he’s leaving, I’m certain a small part of him is going to be holding back, chewing on that spear of his.”

The sound of Zeff’s makeshift peg leg rhythmically hit the wood as I followed him, listening intently to what the chef was saying.

“He’s still just a little eggplant in that regard. Not willing to leave the place or people he grew up with for stupid reasons. Denying himself of his dream for that stupid belief that he owes me or this ship anything. He’s a kind brat, Kailina.”

We stopped at a door, and Zeff opened it and closed the door after me. Part of the wall was missing, the wood shredded from some sort of impact. There was a bed shoved into the corner across from the door, and a bookshelf hung over it. A desk was propped up against the wall, a map hung over it with the Baratie’s location circled in red ink. It was a relatively simple cabin. Zeff walked over to the bed and hauled out a book, running his fingers down the spin before turning back around to me. But before he could change the subject, I spoke my mind.

“But sometimes it’s best to just speak from the heart at times like these. Sanji’s leaving, and going on a dangerous journey he might not come back from. Do you really want your goodbye to leave some things unsaid?”

Zeff paused, considering my words carefully. He seemed to have reached a conclusion and chuckled quietly before replying.

“You might be right, Kailina. I’ll have to see what happens.” He held out the book to me, “In the meantime, I wanted to ask if you were interested in taking this with you.”

It was old, the russet cover of the book was ratty, and I could see the pages within were stained and stuck together after exposure to water. Gently, my hands removed the book from Zeff’s, and the coarse fibers that still held the pages together rubbed against my skin. The faded text was still legible, reading ‘The Log Book’, and below it was the Jolly Roger of Red Foot Zeff: what looked like a chicken or duck with wearing a chef hat, the crossbones were substituted with a crossed knife and fork.

“Is this that logbook Don Krieg was talking about?” Flipping the book over, I glanced up at him from my scrutiny of the book to wait for Zeff’s response.

“Yeah. In that book, the year-long journey on the Grand Line is recorded. The struggles and adventures of my men and myself, all written down onto paper.”

Looking down at the book again I ran my thumb across the pages, but I didn’t move to crack open the cover and see what was written inside.

“Did you fill all the pages?” My question left me before I realised it.

It seemed like all the pages had been written on, the sheets of paper curved into the spine individually. It indicated that each page had at least been opened up and allowed to breathe, and as none of the pages looked to be straight and untouched, that was my conclusion. I guess the question I posed to ‘Red Foot’ Zeff was merely to confirm my own deduction.

“Mm. Each and every page of this logbook has been written on.”

Pleased with his answer, I smiled and returned the important book to the owner of the Baratie. He answered my smile with a grin of his own, and ran his fingers down the back of the spine again.

“It’s very kind of you to offer, but I think that book’s been through enough already. Besides…” My smile grew wider and my body shivered with excitement, “I’m planning to fill more than one book with all the horizons I’m going to see.”

He laughed, and I laughed too.

“I suppose so, Kailina. I’m planning to offer it to our chore boy as well, but I think you know his answer as well as I do at this point.”

“I think so.”

We spent a quiet minute thinking of the pirate, before our fond smiles faded and a light air surrounded us.

“I’m going to go get ready for our departure.”

“Mm. That’s a good idea.”

Letting myself out of the man’s room, I turned back as my hand grasped the door’s handle. Zeff had sat down on his bed, looking at the logbook fondly as he let out a deep breath.

“Thanks for everything, chef Zeff.”

While I had only known him for a few hours at most, the chef had grown on me. Thinking on it, a lot of people had grown on me in a short amount of time: Luffy, Sanji, Zeff… even the cooks didn’t seem to be such a bad bunch. I didn’t know Yosaku, Johnny, Usopp, or Zoro well enough at this point to make such claims with certainty, but from what I saw they weren’t that bad either.

I took a moment to appreciate how many people my journey allowed me to meet, both good and bad.

Smiling once again, I turned the handle and left Zeff’s room. As I made my way downstairs and grabbed Kikoeru off of the dining table I had placed it on, I couldn’t help but wonder how the rest of my adventure would unfold. Kikoeru thrummed in my hand, the vibrations echoing into my core as I strapped the dual glaive onto my back with a practiced pace.

“I know, Kikoeru. We’re in for quite the ride, aren’t we?”

Chuckling quietly to myself, I made sure to check that I had everything I came with. The old map, the wanted poster of Acaste Caspian, the silver coin, and the bag of money Grist had given me could all be found on my body. Thinking about it, I pulled the small pouch of Berries from its hiding place in my boot. Pulling out enough to pay for the meal I had, I placed it on one of the tables. Tucking the pouch back into my boot, and shoving it down my leg to secure it further, I silently thanked Kura for teaching me to always carry the most important things on my body. The only thing that I had in my missing ship that I wanted back was the training staff stashed in the cabin.

“Hey, Kaili! Are you ready to leave?”

Brining myself out of my thoughts, I turned to see Luffy coming down the stairs. He was carrying a large sack, presumably carrying the meat that we were given. Based on how much the contents of the bag bulged against its container, I’m sure we were getting a lot more meat than what the cooks had originally intended on giving us. At least we won’t starve…

“Yeah, let’s head to the ship. I’m pretty sure Yosaku is waiting for us.”

“Got it!”

Luffy and I made our way to the ship, and sure enough, Yosaku was waiting for us.

“Have you seen Sanji?” Yosaku immediately asked us as we stepped onto the nice-looking ship. It had a decent sized deck and cabin, and a large fridge and kitchen waited inside. Green paint striped the boat, and gave it a nicer look than the usual unpainted wood that most ships sailed with.

“I’m sure he’ll show up after he’s said his goodbyes to the restaurant.” My words seemed to satisfy Yosaku for now, but he was still anxious to set sail.

Over the next few minutes, the cooks gathered on the hastily repaired fin, all wanting to say their goodbyes to Sanji before he left.

“Oh, there he is.”

At the sound of Yosaku’s voice I looked up from Kikoeru’s blade, which I had been inspecting for any sort of damage or blunt edge. Sanji had appeared from Baratie, carrying a small bag over his shoulder and a briefcase in his hand. The cooks turned and stared at him as he made his way to the ship. He had only taken a few steps onto Baratie’s fin when Patty and Carne attacked him from behind with large spoons.

“We’ve been saving this up for years!”

“Say your prayers, Sanji! You’re about to face the result of our longstanding grudge!”

It was rather lackluster, as Sanji easily dodged the duo’s attack and countered with his own strong kicks. They fell to the floor easily, probably bleeding onto the newly cleaned wood. Sanji continued walking towards the ship, staying silent as he passed by the cooks he had worked with for years. Soon enough, Sanji stood in front of the ship.

“Let’s go.”

“Aren’t you going to say goodbye?” Luffy crossed his arms and tilted his head, confused by Sanji’s departure.

“That’s okay.” Luffy said nothing else, and Sanji moved to board his vessel.

“Hey, Sanji!” Zeff’s voice stopped Sanji in his tracks, the chef leaning on the railing as he called out from the top floor of the Baratie, “Keep your feet dry.”

Sanji’s visible eye welled up with tears, and soon the salty water ran down both of his cheeks.

“Chef Zeff!” As he shouted, he turned around and bowed to the man, his forehead pressing against the wood of the fighting deck, “All these years, I’ve lived under your shitty roof! You’ve done so many damn things for me over the years… I owe you my life! I’ll never forget your kindness for the rest of my life!”

“You crap-head!” Patty and Carne seemed to have recovered from Sanji’s kick, and were crying as well.

“I’ll miss you, dammit!”

“I’ll miss you, too!”

Their words seemed to have spread the heartfelt goodbye as the rest of the cooks began crying as well, calling out similar things.

“I’ll miss you!”

“It’s so sad!”

“We’re all gonna miss you!”

“Sentimental fools!” Zeff’s voice rang out above the others, although it seemed as if he wasn’t faring any better, “Men should part without a word.”

The moment lasted a little longer, but soon Sanji pulled himself together and boarded the ship, calling out one final goodbye to Baratie and her fighting cooks.

“Goodbye, you crap-bastards!”

“Let’s go! Set sail!” Luffy grinned cheekily as he called out his order.

The sails were unfurled, and the ship was carried away from the restaurant by the waves and wind. The four of us waved at the Baratie until it faded from sight, all of us saddened to leave it behind. Soon enough, we stopped looking back and starting looking forwards.

Well, most of us were…

“Waaaaah!”

“How long are you gonna keep blubbering, Yosaku? Cheer up.”

“BUD ID WAS ALL SO BOOVING!” Yosaku sniffed loudly, wiping at the tears that spilled endlessly from his eyes, “Such a beautiful leave-taking, brother cook!”

“Can you even see enough to steer this tub?”

Shaking my head at the conversation they were having, I decided to steer it in a more important direction: our destination. Both Luffy and Sanji seemed pretty carefree now that we had set sail, and I briefly wondered how Luffy could be so at ease when he had the highest chance of falling into the ocean’s waters. He was sitting cross-legged on the bowsprit of the vessel, while Sanji and Yosaku were sitting on the deck with their backs pressed against the railing. I sat across from Luffy, my back leaning against the cabin’s outer wall – with a lot of distance between me and the sides of the ship. Kikoeru was propped up against the cabin beside me.

“So, Yosaku, where exactly **_are_** you steering us to?”

“Ah! Sister Kailina, I’ll tell you!” Yosaku seemed to perk up at my question, and quickly put a stop to his snivelling and waterworks, “Sister Nami is on a collision course with one scary guy! Someone who you shouldn’t be taking so lightly, brothers!”

Both Sanji and Luffy shrugged off his warning, but managed to patiently listen anyway.

“You need to understand what we’re walking into. There’s a reason the Grand Line is called the pirate’s graveyard! It’s ‘cause three great powers rule over those waters.” He paused, making sure that we were all listening, and almost seemed to expect that he was going to get cut off soon, “One of those powers are the Seven Warlords of the Sea.”

“Who are they?”

“I’m glad you asked, sister Kailina. They’re the seven pirate leaders who are recognised by the government.”

“What? Why would the government recognize pirates?” Sanji asked the question before I could, and Yosaku continued.

“The Seven Warlords of the Sea inhabit wild regions, and unlicensed pirates are easy targets for them. The government allows the Seven Warlords to raid the seas in return for a cut of their haul.” Yosaku made a face, “Other pirates call them ‘government dogs’, but they’re tough! The man who defeated brother Zoro, Hawk-Eye Mihawk, he’s one of the Seven Warlords!”

“Wow! There are six more like him?! The Seven Warlords must be impressive!”

Luffy looked excited, clapping his feet together as his eyes widened at the news.

“Of course they’re impressive. I doubt the government would sanction pirates who could get defeated easily. If that was the case, they’d just send someone out to do it. The government probably only recognises them just so that they take their side when problems arise.”

“Mademoiselle, your reasoning never ceases to amaze~!”

“The problem is Jimbei, the leader of the Fishman Pirates! In exchange for becoming one of the Seven Warlords, Jimbei released a holy terror into the East Blue.”

“Fishman, huh? Their island in the Grand Line is famous, right? I’ve heard there are beautiful mermaids there…” Sanji seemed to get lost in his own world as he spoke, and I wasn’t entirely interested on seeing where his thoughts led him.

“Hmm… Like this?”

My attention turned to Luffy, who had somehow gotten hold of paper and a pen, drew a picture of a regular fish with four legs attached to the bottom of it. I felt bad for the fish…

“Hahaha! What an ugly fish!” Sanji laughed out as he looked at Luffy’s drawing.

“Fine, we’ll skip the history lesson. Right now, we’re heading for Arlong Park! It’s the base of operations for Arlong, sitting next to Cocoyashi village!” Yosaku said this as if he waited for a reaction… But as the three of us could only blink at his exclamation, he sighed and explained further, “Arlong’s a Fishman. He used to be Jimbei’s equal. Which means his strength is far superior to Don Krieg’s, and this is his territory!”

“How do you know that Nami’s heading that way, when you didn’t even catch up with her?”

“Johnny and I figured it out, sister Kailina. Sister Nami’s eyes were glued to Arlong’s wanted poster since she saw it, there’s no coincidence there! There’s some connection between them.”

It was reasonable enough, I suppose. Enough to follow the course we were on, at least.

“How ‘bout this one?”

Luffy showed another drawing, this time the fish was standing upright. Legs replaced its tail, and it had an arm for both sides of its body. It looked somewhat better than the last picture…?

“That’s just a standing version of your last fish. But what business could Nami have with that Fishman?” Sanji then got lost in his own head again, “Maybe she’s really a mermaid! She’s certainly lovely enough…”

Luffy scribbled on his drawing, and then showed it to us again. He had added eyelashes and hair to the Fishman, as well as writing ‘Nami’ above it. Somehow, I had a feeling it didn’t look like Nami at all. Sanji agreed.

“I’ll murder ya, she doesn’t look like that!”

“Haven’t you heard a word I’ve said?!” Yosaku angrily asked the men, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

“Sure, there’s some mean Fishman. Got it.”

“No, you don’t get it! His strength is unimaginable!”

“Well, we’ll find out when we get there.”

“Yeah. Don’t worry so much, Yosaku.”

“ **What a waste of breath!** ”

Laughing at the banter between the three, I was sure that if Yosaku had longer hair, he’d be pulling it out right now. The carefree pirate captain and his cook seemed totally unfazed by the reality of the situation, and I could feel myself wanting to get swept away in Luffy’s reckless abandon. But I didn’t. Kura taught me better than that. At least _some_ sort of planning and information gathering should happen during each voyage.

“Yosaku, how far does Arlong’s territory extend?”

“Ah… He rules over about twenty towns since he came to the East Blue. Most, if not all, are in the Conomi Islands.”

“Sanji! Food!”

“What? Luffy, you know we ate… not even a half hour ago, right?”

“But I’m hungry, Kaili!”

I sighed at Luffy, and Yosaku didn’t seem to be doing much better.

“Okay, let’s eat. It’ll take some time to prepare the food, and it’ll be a while until we get there anyway. What would you like?” Sanji rolled up his sleeves, his black jacket long discarded due to the warm weather and the strong sun shining down on the deck.

“Meat! On a bone!”

“Stir-fried bean sprouts!”

They both answered instantaneously. My shoulders sagged as I realized that creating anything that resembled a plan would end poorly on this ship.

“At least I have the pleasure of cooking for a beautiful lady like you, Mademoiselle~! What can I get for you?” Sanji reached for my hands again, but I replied before he could grab them.

“Uh, I’m not really hungry… But I would love something light with fruit in it, if it’s not too much trouble!”

“It’s no trouble at all, my lovely Mademoiselle~!”

He beamed brightly as he made his way into the kitchen, leaving Luffy, Yosaku, and I out on the deck. The sound of splashing drew my attention from the people on board and I looked out over the railing, seeing what I could without moving from my position. Lots of small, narrow, fish leaped out of the water around the boat. Their wing-like fins fluttering wildly before they dove back into the ocean. A whole school of the flying fish travelled with us and seagulls called out in the sky above.

“The weather’s so great!”

My gaze turned to Luffy, who stretched out his arms as he spoke. I half expected his Devil Fruit power to kick in, but it seemed like he was only stretching out his muscles this time. Curious, I decided to find out what I could about his powers.

“Hey Luffy?”

“Hm? Yeah?”

“You ate a Devil Fruit, right?”

“Yeah. I ate the Gum-Gum Fruit.”

“The Gum-Gum Fruit?”

“Yup!” He popped the ‘p’, “I’m a rubber man. I can stretch my body!”

To emphasise this, he pulled on his cheek, and the skin stretched until his arm was fully extended. He then let go of the skin, and it snapped back into place. Both stretching his body and having it snap back into place didn’t seem to hurt him.

“I see…”

Luffy nodded enthusiastically before looking around wildly. He slid off of his perch and began running around the ship, peering out into the horizon from many different places.

“I wonder if the Grand Line’s out this way?!”

“Or maybe it’s this way?!”

“Or this way?!”

“That way?”

“This is so exciting!”

“Brother Luffy, you’re not sailing for the Grand Line yet, so sit still!”

Luffy dejectedly listened to Yosaku, and returned to his perch. But another wide grin encompassed his face by the time he had settled down.

“Ahh… I can’t wait to get Nami back and head for the Grand Line!”

“There’s only five of you, and you’re heading to the Grand Line already?” My question had Luffy grinning towards me as he replied.

“Yeah! I’ll gather more crewmembers when we get to the Grand Line!” His smile widened, “After all, chef Zeff said it was paradise for some people.”

“Paradise? Big Bro Luffy, I’ve told you: It’s the pirate’s graveyard!” Yosaku’s comment brought my attention back to his explanation of the three powers that ruled over the Grand Line, and I decided to ask about them.

“Yosaku, who are the other two powers of the Grand Line?”

“Well, one of them is the Marine Headquarters: the main division of the Marine organization. The marines that you find in the branch organizations in the four blues are nothing compared to what you’ll find on the Grand Line. Based on what I’ve heard, marines that come from the headquarters at Marineford are the ‘super-elites’. Other marines just can’t even begin to compare.”

I nodded slowly, vaguely recalling the few times that Grist had brought up Marineford. Both Grist’s and Yosaku’s explanation provided the same information: the Navy Headquarters had plenty of powerful sailors in their ranks.

“And the other?”

“I don’t really know too much about the Four Emperors, other than the title is reserved for the most notorious and most powerful pirate captains in the world. The strength of the captains alone is the stuff of legends, but they also have large elite crews, making close alliances with other pirate captains and trusting a select few of their members as commanders for their fleets! Not only that, but their influence also extend to land, many having territories that they give their protection to. They say that an alliance of two Emperors would-“

“Hey guys, look!”

We both turned to see Luffy with his legs wrapped around the bowsprit, his stomach flattened against the wood as his arms stretched out from the boat and tried to catch one of the jumping fish. As he called us over, one of the fish had been caught by his hand and wriggled frantically as it tried to escape.

“Good job, Big Bro Luffy! See if you can catch another!”

“Right!”

Unfortunately, Luffy let go of the fish he had caught in order to try and catch another one.

“Why did let that one go, brother Luffy?!”

“Because you wanted to see if I could catch another.”

“I meant that you should keep that one and then catch another!”

“Oh. Then you should’ve said so!”

Shaking my head at their antics, I decided that the moment to ask Yosaku questions had passed. Letting the voices of Luffy and Yosaku drift into the background, I closed my eyes. I had gotten more than enough information about the Grand Line for now, probably more than I should at this point. The Emperors, Warlords, and Marine Headquarters seemed to have a delicate balance of power over the Grand Line. Obviously the Marines wouldn’t recruit the Warlords without a good reason, and that reason was probably to combat the Emperors. Pirates fought pirates best, after all.

But there was still so much to learn about the Grand Line. In fact, the little information I had on that sea was terrifying. There were so many uncertainties, and even the information that Yosaku gave me could be nothing but speculation and rumour. If the Grand Line was such a place where anything could happen, it might’ve even changed drastically from the one that chef Zeff sailed on, or even Don Krieg! Different pirates, different marines… A different combination awaited all who sailed on those waters. If you got the wrong combination, if you were in the wrong place at the wrong time… Well, Don Krieg’s first meeting with one of the Warlords meant the early end of his journey on the Grand Line.

At least my first meeting with a Warlord ended relatively well for me.

…

“Mademoiselle?”

My eyes shot open, and I found myself lying inside the cabin with Sanji peaking his head through the door. Sitting upright, I noticed that I had been placed on top of the small bed tucked into the corner of the cabin and I blearily questioned the cook, “Sanji?”

“You’re a deep sleeper, Kailina~! Those idiots just couldn’t stop themselves from making all kinds of noise, and you didn’t even wake. I moved you inside so the sun wouldn’t burn your lovely skin~!”

“Oh. Sorry for the trouble, Sanji. I didn’t mean to fall asleep…”

“It’s no trouble, Mademoiselle. I can’t think of a thing I like doing more than helping a beautiful lady~” He paused for a second, stepping inside of the cabin as I pushed myself up from the bed.

“I cut and washed some fruit for you, it’s on the counter there.” He nodded towards the counter and I made my way towards it.

Slices of strawberries, bananas, and apples were arranged beautifully on a platter. Some of the fruit had started to turn brown with the exposure to the air, but I ate the slices happily anyway. Soon the plate was empty. Fruit had always been my favourite snack, and Grist had never objected to me eating fruit at any time of day.

“Mm~! It’s very good, thanks Sanji!”

“Not a problem, Mademoiselle~!” Sanji grinned at me as he clasped his hands together, but he snapped out of it as he continued, “Oh, you should get ready. We’re coming up on Arlong Park.”

I paused in the middle of strapping Kikoeru to my back at his words, whipping around to face him.

“What?! From the Baratie to Arlong Park, the journey should take three hours at least! Are you saying that I slept that long?!”

“Hm… not really.” Noticing the question I was about to ask, he continued, “We’ve had a little help. The hippo was making great time at the beginning, but it seems to have slowed down a little…”

Still confused as to what he was saying, he gestured for me to follow him out of the cabin. Eager to clear my confusion, I followed. The sun had started its journey downwards, and while it would still be bright out for a few more hours, the strength of the sun had started to diminish. There was a coolness in the air that hadn’t been there before, but I shrugged that off as I continued to follow Sanji. The first thing I noticed as I stepped outside was that the sail had been raised and that the ship still seemed to be moving over the waters quickly. As Sanji led me around to the bow of the ship, I realised why.

There was a giant sea monster towing the vessel towards the rapidly approaching tower of Arlong Park. Its skin was dappled with white and green, and while Sanji referred to it as a hippo, it looked a lot more like some sort of sea cow to me.

“Moo…”

The creature called out, signalling its fatigue as it breathed heavily and started shaking.

“Don’t give up yet, cow!”

Luffy encouraged it as Arlong Park got closer and closer, but the sea monster soon veered off to the left. I suspect the many bruises that tinted the skin of the cow’s head had something to do with its change in course. While I didn’t want to believe I had slept that long, I was almost relieved that I didn’t have to bear witness to Luffy’s first encounter with the animal.

“Hey! To the left! It’s that building!”

“We’re gonna crash into the shore!”

“Hurry and untie the ropes, then!”

“Oh? Kaili! You’re awake!”

“Sister Kailina!”

“Now’s not the time for-!”

Before I could convince them to work on solving the problem, it was already too late. The sea cow had slammed into the shore, and our little boat slid its way up and over the back of the monster. I braced myself against the railing of the ship, expecting the ship to jerk backwards as the rope that tied the vessel to the beast to pull us back towards the sea…

But after a few moments with no such thing happening, I peered out over the edge of the small boat. The rope had slipped itself off the horns of the sea cow as we flew over it, and we were now hurdling through the air with nothing to stop us.

“Yippee! It’s almost like we’re flying!”

“Brother Luffy, now’s not the time!

“Well, it’s more like ‘jumping’.”

“Which means that we’re going to fall soon!” As soon as the words left my mouth, the hull of the ship collided with a green sea of foliage.

Branches snapped under the weight and momentum of the ship, and butterflies made their home in my stomach as I could feel my weightless body lifting away from the relative safety of the wooden deck. Although fear coursed through my body, the thought of what would happen when we hit the ground fluttered from my mind the second I saw Luffy’s wide grin as he stood unflinchingly on the bowsprit. It seemed as if such a thing was expected to be an everyday occurrence, and he boldly decided to not steady himself against the ship.

“Yahooooo!”

This sure was one hell of a crew.


	11. Captain's Orders

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 11: Captain’s Orders.

_Thudd!_

“Landing successful!”

My grip tightened on the railing of the ship and I gritted my teeth at the hard impact my knee had on the deck as the ship landed. Low branches scraped the hull of the ship, some breaking while others just lost some leaves as the ship sailed past. It seemed that the sea cow had been pulling us faster than I thought, as the ship had barely slowed even though it was now dragging itself across the ground.

“Yo! Zoro!”

At the sound of Luffy’s greeting I turned my attention towards the front of the front of the ship. The green haired swordsman had miraculously recovered from his fight with Mihawk, but the amount of bandages wrapped tightly around his chest made me wince. He had thrown over a blue shirt that he left unbuttoned, and currently realized that he was staring down a ship with his captain on it.

“Luffy?!”

He disappeared from view, and I briefly wondered if we had run him over as the ship cleared the forest and sailed across the marshy water of the paddy fields that stood in the path of the land locked vessel. Shifting closer to the front of the ship, I tentatively peered over the edge as Yosaku joined me. Zoro was clinging to the hull of the ship, glaring at his captain who smiled cheekily above him. The lone sword that he carried at his side flared out its greeting, and Kikoeru responded in the same way.

It had grown stronger since the fight with Mihawk. With Zoro raising it to the sky and declaring his oath, the sword had grown surer of its power and drive – the aura it gave off was deeper than before. The calm surface of the river now had a greater, tumultuous depth to it which would challenge even the greatest of opponents with its ferocity and sweep them away with its undercurrent.

It was astounding at how much the sword had grown in such a short period of time…

“Big bro Zoro, look out!!”

My gaze tore itself from the swordsman and soon I was staring down the direct path of the ship, which led to the wall of elevated land which seemed to surround the paddy fields. The rapidly approaching ridge spurred my body into action. Leaping from the ship, making sure to clear the side of the hull, I braced myself for the impact of the ground as I kept my eyes on the ship.

**_KRASH!!_ **

My body hit the ground just as the ship crashed into the rocky cliff. The impact was hard, and the air was forced from my lungs as my shoulder throbbed in pain. Skidding across the low levels of water, the left side of my body incurred a large amount of stinging scratches as I slowed to a stop. Catching my breath, I tenderly lifted myself into a sitting position. My side ached, and I knew that most of the skin would eventually blossom into a pattern of darkly coloured bruising, if it hadn’t already. Slowly standing up, the water drained off of me, and with a thankful sigh I realized that the visible flesh of my leg had only reddened slightly – my torso had taken most of the impact with what little grace it could muster.

I slowly began walking towards the wreckage, carefully twisting my upper body around as I tried to determine how much of my shoulder was damaged through the pain that blossomed through the muscle as it expanded and contracted.

Battered and bruised, but it wasn’t dislocated or broken.

Picking up my pace to a light jog now that I had taken stock of my injuries, I quickly followed the trench that Sanji’s ship had made. The unearthed soil was light in colour, but the edges of the trench soon darkened as water seeped itself into the trough from the surrounding paddy fields. Luckily, it hadn’t turned into mud by the time I reached the Straw Hats, whom had apparently all survived and left fairly unharmed from the impact.

“Oh, Kaili! You made it.” Luffy greeted me as he noticed my approach, and waited until I was only a few feet away before he continued, “Why did you jump off?”

“Unlike you people, a normal human might’ve died from that.” I stuck Kikoeru into the ground before I released my light blonde hair from the ponytail that had seen better days and turned towards the swordsman, “Where’s my ship?”

“Bottom of the ocean.” His instant answer came with a suspicious look that never faded, “What are you doing here?”

“And _why_ is it at the bottom of the ocean?”

“The Fishmen sunk it.” He glared at me, “Why are you here?”

Anger coursed through my veins, and I quickly moved my attention from the swordsman to his ‘brother’ who was cowering behind Luffy.

“Well, I guess now I’m here to make good on a threat…” My hands reached for Kikoeru, and I plucked it easily from the ground as I stepped towards Yosaku. He shrivelled backwards with every step I took.

“C-C’mon now, sister Kailina! I’m sure we can find you a-another…?” His voice trailed off as I stopped my advance and turned away from the man.

A faint sound reached my ears and then faded away quickly. Carefully focusing all my energy on listening for the sound, I closed my eyes and waited.

“Mademoiselle?”

I heard Sanji stand, his shoes scuffing against the ground as he approached, but I waved him off as I gave him a sharp “Quiet.”

He paused, and I took that moment to fall deep into myself. Reaching out in the darkness for the chime of the sound – for the blade that called out to me. After a heartbeat, it called out again. The low guttural sound was clearer this time, although it still barely registered to my ears. It was rough, the sound sent a shiver down my spine as it growled through the darkness at me. However, with all of its unpleasantness it still rang hollow to me. It had the capabilities of becoming stronger, but its growth remained unfulfilled. It was a stark contrast to the blades I had come into contact with up until this point.

Most blades had no voice: unable to manifest their aura into a soul because their wielders were unable to imbue them with that power. Many years of hard work and training could grant these soundless blades an aura, but almost all lacked the ability to do so and by the time they were capable of doing so their wielders would discard them for newer blades. In this age, there were many who wielded swords in this way.

In fact, it was frequently the case that the forger of the blade determined the weapon’s ability to contain an aura. The swordsman simply shaped the vessel, and the attributes of the aura trickled in with time.

As such, the voices that called out to me were the minority; Kikoeru, Zoro’s sword, and Mihawk’s sword all had strong voices that had already chosen their affinity. Out of the numerous affinities, blades associating with wind were the most common – the three previously stated had aligned themselves with this affinity and enabled them to expand the range of their attacks. Unfortunately, I was still ill-versed in much of the Sireon bloodline’s understanding of this process. I had hardly seen a weapon apart from the many drawings in my father’s study until recently…

But even so, it was quite clear to me that the blade I was sensing had not yet chosen its affinity, giving it a hollow undertone to its voice.

“Arlong Park’s in that direction, isn’t it?” I pointed to where I felt the blade’s voice fade away, satisfied that I had acknowledged its existence and now was silent.

“That’s right, there’s no time to chat!” Zoro lurched forwards and ran past me, heading in the same direction I was pointing.

“Zoro? What’s wrong?” Luffy questioned him as I lowered my arm and Sanji stepped up next to me as we watched Zoro with confusion painted on our faces.

“That idiot’s been caught by Arlong! We gotta hurry before he’s-!”

“ **We’re too late. Usopp’s been killed!** ”

The man with sunglasses from before, Johnny, stood in the now muddy soil. His chest heaved, sweat dripping down his face as he panted wildly.

Zoro stopped in his tracks, “What do you mean, Johnny?”

“Brother Usopp’s been killed by sister Nami!”

I blinked. My brow furrowed as a hushed silence fell over the group, all of them frozen in place by the news. This Nami character seemed to be quite the piece of work. Stealing the Straw Hat’s ship – what was the name? Going Merry? And then killing Usopp – the long nosed man I met at the restaurant… But even with this…

“You take that back!!” Luffy grabbed Johnny’s collar, walking him backwards as if the weight of his refusal left him unsteady. We followed after him, and soon we were standing on the dry soil of the road that passed by the paddy fields.

“There’s no way Nami would kill Usopp! She’s our navigator!”

…I couldn’t believe a word about the navigator unless it was Luffy’s. Luffy was the captain of the crew that followed the future Pirate King – he wouldn’t choose his shipmates easily. On the long and hard journey that he was undertaking, there had to be no room for doubting the people he carried with him. In order to reach his dream, he had to take care in the crew that he chose. Zoro and Sanji seemed to be incredibly reliable in fights, and both – from my understanding – were not light hearted in choosing who they would follow.

With this in mind, I quickly decided that Usopp had not been killed by Nami, choosing to believe in Luffy’s unfaltering trust in his crew.

“Stop it, Luffy. It’s not Johnny’s fault!”

“He’s talking crazy!”

“If you don’t want to believe it, fine!! But I saw it with my own eyes!”

“She’s our nakama*!”

Zoro, Luffy, and Johnny were too focused on their fight to notice a slim woman approaching the group. She wore a green camisole with dark green flower shapes and tight fitting black pants with two yellow rings on each side. She wore light orange high-heeled sandals which matched her short orange hair she had tucked behind her ears, one unruly strand fell in front of her left ear defiantly. A gloved hand held a bow staff as she crossed her arms around her waist. Her sharp brown eyes ignored me as she watched the commotion that the three were making idly before speaking up.

“Who’s your nakama, Luffy? Better yet, why are you here?”

“Oh, Nami!” He released Johnny from his grasp and turned towards the woman with a confused look on his face, “Whaddya mean? You’re our nakama, so we came to get you!”

“What a nuisance.”

“Nami?”

“Nakama? Don’t make me laugh. You’re a bunch of pathetic misfits who didn’t even realize that my goal was to rob you blind.” The expression on her face hardly changed as she spoke, the words were methodical and rehearsed. They were convincing, but not convincing enough.

“Nami-san*! Nami-san! It’s me~! Do you remember me?! Let’s set sail together!” Sanji waved enthusiastically at the navigator, his tone lilting into an affectionate one as he spoke.

“You stay out of this! You’re just complicating things!” Zoro snapped Sanji out of his excitement, and the two were soon glaring each other down.

“So?! Love is always a hurricane!”

Well, at least I’m not the only one on the receiving end of the swordsman’s glares. Said swordsman soon turned his glare from the blond cook to the navigator.

“Where’s Usopp?”

“Usopp’s feeding the fishes at the bottom of the ocean.”

Zoro’s blade called out as the man placed his hand on the hilt. It echoed its master’s anger, responding the instant his fingers brushed against the white grip.

“Cut the crap!” Zoro stepped towards Nami, but quickly unsheathed his blade and jumped back in order to dodge Sanji’s kick.

“You’re the one who’d better cut the crap! What kind of swordsman would strike a young lady, Roronoa Zoro?”

“What?! Stay out of this, you love-struck fool!”

“Hmph. After such a humiliating defeat, it’s no wonder you’re in such a foul mood.”

“Huh?! Hold your tongue, or I’ll send your head flying!”

“Try it you shitty swordsman. You can barely stand.”

The two were at each other’s throats, and I could _feel_ the animosity coming from them. Unfortunately, they were standing in my way. Stepping between them, my fingertips reached out and pressed against the back of the swordsman’s blade and guided it out of my way. It rang loud and clear, the reverberations of its voice rattled through my bones as I forced myself to move towards the navigator and away from the stunningly crafted blade.

“Oh, mademoiselle~! It’s such a shame to see such a beautiful lady surrounded by idiotic bastards…” Zoro missed the glare that the cook sent him.

“Oi, woman. Where are you going?” Glancing back at Zoro’s words, the swordsman was curiously looking at his sword before meeting my gaze with a cold look.

“Sheesh! Would you stop glaring at me like I’m a criminal, you criminal?”

“If you stopped acting so suspicious I wouldn’t have to!”

“Suspicious? You’re probably the most suspicious out of everyone here!” Sighing, I pinched the bridge of my nose as I resumed my path towards Nami, “Hey, you know anything about a ship being sunk? The one that the knuckleheads used to get here?”

She silently appraised me, as if noting my existence for the first time. I could feel her brown eyes mapping out every curve of my body, and a barely recognisable look of confusion flashed across her face so fast I might’ve missed it if I hadn’t been examining her as closely as she was examining me. She twirled her staff idly as the silence continued, and out of instinct I shifted and trailed my foot down the back of my leg before tapping the boot on the ground twice.

“Yeah. They brought it over to Gosa’s shore and then sunk it.”

This could be a good thing after all. I’ll see if the training staff Kura had given me washed ashore (although it does weigh an awful lot…) and I’ll also get to see the village that Grist grew up in.

“How do I get to Gosa?”

“The village was destroyed, and your ship has sunk. We don’t like outsiders sticking their noses into our business!”

Gosa was destroyed? Grist had never said anything of the sort before I left… But he also never really spoke about any sort of news he heard – probably some sort of order my father gave him. Still, the fact that it was destroyed didn’t change my initial reason for going.

“Well, either you tell me how to get to Gosa or I head over to Arlong Park and stir up a little doubt.” I narrowed my eyes at the girl, noticing anger and an underlying fear spread across her face, “What’s it going to be?”

I had lowered my voice so that the others couldn’t hear me, in case the others caught wind of my underlying threat and either wanted to join or stop me. Nami thought for a moment. Eventually she nodded towards the road leading away from Arlong Park, “If you head that way you’ll get to Cocoyashi village. Keep going and you’ll reach Gosa. Or what’s left of it anyway…”

 “Thank you.” Our eyes locked, and I sent her a smile that didn’t quite soothe the glares that we shared. As I started walking away from the group and down the road that would lead me to Cocoyashi, I turned back and waved goodbye to Luffy, “See you around, Luffy.”

For some reason, I had the feeling that this wasn’t where we would be parting ways. At best, by the time the Straw Hats were leaving the island I would be leaving with them. But, right now wouldn’t be a good time to ask. Not when the crew’s navigator has suddenly switched sides and the sniper is ‘missing’ at the very least. No, I would have to wait a little longer to ask Luffy to take me along on his adventures. While I’m not sure he’d accept me, I won’t know until ask…

“Oh, you’re leaving?” Luffy tilted his head as if he was contemplating something, and then broke out into a grin, “Okay. See ya later!”

With that, I ignored Sanji’s fervent farewell and Zoro’s eyes burning into my back and continued down the path. Kikoeru hummed against my back, and I resisted the urge to run my fingers over the weapon until I was well out of sight from the group of pirates. I could still hear Nami’s voice as the trees shaded the road, parts of her angry threats and dismissal of the crew travelling through the still air. Unfortunately, I couldn’t catch most of the fading words as I walked and the ones that I did were impossible to string together cohesively.

The walk to Cocoyashi village was a pleasant one. It was a short one, too. From what I understood, Sanji’s ship had landed about halfway between Arlong Park and Cocoyashi – based on how far away the blade I heard was. This meant that it was only a ten minute walk from Arlong Park to Cocoyashi, the well-travelled road seemingly taking the shortest path between the two.

Cocoyashi was a quiet village filled with hardworking people. While the residents bustled about their business, they did so with a weight hanging over them: one which caused the village to fill with a restless energy that put me on edge as I walked past the buildings. I could sense a few villagers watching me as they whispered to one another, but when I glanced over my shoulder they continued with their tasks and picking out who had been whispering based on my vision alone was a difficult feat.

“It seems like you’re an outsider.”

My eyes swivelled forward to find a middle aged man wearing a brown police uniform with short sleeves and the usual pants replaced with shorts that reached just above his knees. Almost every inch of visible skin was scarred, but he held a kind look in his eyes despite his gruff appearance and voice. A brown mustache traced the man’s upper lip before it curled downwards, slightly extending below the corners of his mouth. One of the scars that covered his face ran through his mustache, the scarred skin creating a small line where no hair grew.

A small breeze blew by, and a clacking sound drew my attention to the pinwheel that was placed onto his police hat.

“Yeah, I’m not from here. My name is Kailina, nice to meet you.” My body instinctively moved to salute the man but I awkwardly supressed the motion and instead offered him a polite bow.

“My, my. It seems some of the youth today still understands how to respect their elders.” The man chuckled, the corners of his eyes creasing as he offered me a smile, “My name’s Genzo. I’m the sheriff and mayor of Cocoyashi village.”

“Well, mister Genzo, could you point me in the direction of Gosa village?” Noticing the way his eyes narrowed at my question, the corners of my mouth quickly curled upwards in a polite smile, “You see, I’ve been told that the Fishmen sunk my ship around the village’s coast. I’m hoping to see if anything was swept ashore…”

“Ah, I see…” He shook his head and sighed, “I’m afraid that you won’t be getting your belongings back anytime soon. One of Arlong’s crew has a tendency to collect human items, so they bring the ships over to Gosa so that the debris that surfaces while he’s ripping apart the sunken ship won’t clutter up Arlong Park…”

“A Fishman collecting human things?”

“Yeah.” His voice held a warning in it and his jaw clenched.

My question was intended to gather more information on the Fishman, but the mayor refused to say anything more on the matter. His eyes were saying the same thing that Nami told me: ‘We don’t like outsiders meddling in our affairs’. Unfortunately for them, I had no intentions of backing off.

“Well, that’s too bad…” I paused as Genzo agreed with the statement before continuing, “So, which way to Gosa?” A frown spread itself across the man’s face as he stared down at my expectant gaze.

“There’s nothing in Gosa for you, girl.”

“Figured I could live with a little sightseeing.”

“It’s best if you just leave this place.”

“Kinda hard to do that without a ship. So… Gosa?”

“Outsiders like you don’t understand. There’s nothing left of Gosa.”

“Then it’ll be a short trip.”

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he realized the conversation was going nowhere.

“…You’re a stubborn one, aren’t you?”

“I like to think of it as ‘determined’. But stubborn works too.”

He sighed again and gestured for me to follow him as he led me through the village. The path to Gosa village was pretty much a straight shot from the road that I came to Cocoyashi on: only a few turns here and there and we stopped walking. Some villagers paused in their work to watch the two of us pass by, but I couldn’t hear any more whispers.

“If you follow this road it’ll lead you to Gosa village. Well, what’s left of it anyway...” He hesitated, but soon he continued on, “If you see a little kid, Chabo, or an elderly woman, Mara, tell them to come back to Cocoyashi. They have a tendency to sneak over to Gosa and… Well, just tell them to come back.”

I offered him a smile and bowed in thanks before starting on the path which curved over the rolling hills. Palm trees dotted the trail, and the breeze carried the scent of the ocean with it as it travelled over the relatively open fields. I was stopped by the man’s voice before I could get too far from Cocoyashi village, and I pulled my hair over one shoulder as I looked back to see what he wanted.

“Word of advice, Kailina… I’d find somewhere to stash that weapon of yours. If a Fishmen sees you with it, it’s not going to end well.” The pinwheel on his hat spun slowly as he said this, the breeze languidly making its way through the quaint village. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

I laughed, my hand encircling Kikoeru as it gave a hum of approval at my touch.

“Noted, mister Genzo. But wherever I go, Kikoeru goes.”

With that, I turned back around and my gaze never returned to Cocoyashi as my mind bent itself around the thought of Gosa. Neither Nami nor Genzo were willing to say much of anything about the village’s destruction, and outsiders weren’t welcome. That much was clear. But why had the village been destroyed? How?

But, the most important question on my mind was why the marines hadn’t interfered yet. According to what Yosaku said on the way to the island, Arlong had twenty villages under his control. Marine bases were present throughout all of the four seas, so why had no help come? Even the island which the Sireon family called home was only a few hours away…

Why had the Arlong Pirates escaped the Navy’s attention?

“Well now, bay-by! Don’t you look like a fish out of water?”

My eyes snapped up to meet those of what I could only assume was a Fishman. He was tall and slim, towering at least a foot over my frame. Coal eyes stared down at me as a lopsided grin played on his lips. His skin had a blue hue to it, and the tentacles that flowed from beneath the grey beanie he was wearing were only a shade or two lighter than his skin tone. Two long ‘strands’ of hair fell in front of his ears while the others obediently rolled down his back.

He wore a simple black low-necked tank top which also exposed his sides, the armholes of the shirt sweeping down low enough so that his elbows would touch his blue skin if pressed firmly into his sides. Dark green cargo shorts reached just below his knees and a pair of flip flops adorned his feet. A tattoo revealed itself to me as he leaned down to meet my eye level, his hands finding themselves into his pockets as he did so. It looked like the black outline of a saw-nosed shark turned to the left as its tail curved beneath it. Surrounding the shark was a white semi-oval with three curves emitting from it. Remembering that a similar tattoo was on Nami’s left arm, I considered it safe to say that it was the mark of the Arlong Pirates.

He smelled of the sea, and I suppressed the urge to wrinkle my nose at the strong scent. However, as I did so my eyes caught sight of a large staff pressed into his side. His arms weaved around the black material, keeping it close to him as he straightened himself up again. It was Kura’s training staff. Apparently the Fishman took it upon himself to pull it from the seafloor. Lucky me. All I have to do now was find a good opportunity to take it back–

“C’mon bay-by! Stop giving me the cold shoulder and let me off the hook~ I just wanna have a little chat with ya!” His voice was deep, and I relaxed the tension that had seeped into my face when I spotted the training staff. He seemed friendly, I think.

“Sorry, you caught me while I was thinking.” He hummed thoughtfully.

“Bahahaha! That’s good. I thought you were gonna be an anchor*!” With his carefree tone and lopsided grin unchanging, he continued with what I uncertainly took as a threat, “You know, Arlong forbids villagers from owning weapons, bay-by.”

His eyes gleamed as they looked down at me, a strange smile that I couldn’t name passing over his face briefly before his lopsided grin returned. While I felt the beginnings of an instinctive shiver trying to make itself known, I forced myself to not give into it.

“It’s a good thing I’m not a villager, then.”

“Yeah, I’d say so.” He took his hands out of his pockets and leaned his weight onto the training staff, “Y’know, now that I think about it a lot of travellers have been passing by lately. A lot of them have been making _quite_ the commotion…”

“Have they now?”

“Yeah. The prawns* have been making waves, you catch my drift? First there was a long-nosed guy, and he made Arlong _really_ mad. Then came the bounty hunter swordsman guy, and that didn’t go over well with the old trout at all, bay-by!”

“You don’t seem to be that upset.” While it was a statement, the inflection of my voice changed it into a pointed question.

“Me? Nah, I like to just go with the flow. Real laid-back and whatnot. Besides, things have been boring ‘round here for the longest time, bay-by. I thought the humans would put up a little fight, but they’ve been boring for a while.” He shrugged and walked around me as he continued, “They were nice little prawns until Gosa couldn’t pay up and Momoo destroyed it.”

The Fishman continued on his path towards Cocoyashi village, twirling the training staff as he did so. My gaze followed him as he walked, noting that he didn’t seem to be bothered by the weight of the staff even though his body seemed to have little muscle. I guess that’s the difference between a human and a Fishman: taller, stronger, and probably faster. The hint of a smile spread across my face as I tried to contain my excitement at the strong opponent walking away from me.

“Oh, why don’t you stir up a little trouble yourself, bay-by? I’d certainly be entertained if I had to teach you a lesson~! Bahahaha!”

His laugh faded quickly as his long legs carried him away from me in a few short seconds. After a few moments of staring blankly at the spot where he had disappeared from view – the road curving downwards and obscuring my sight. Shrugging my shoulders, I continued on my own way. Soon enough the hills flattened out and I could see buildings in the distance. However, they seemed strange. As I got closer, I knew why.

Every house in the village had been flipped over and in the place of the roads that led down each row of houses, there was a deep gouge in the ground. It was as if something large and heavy had pulled itself along the roads. Thinking back on what the Fishman had said about ‘Momoo’ destroying the village, and based on the width of the trail that scarred the dirt, I thought back to that large sea-cow thing that the Straw Hats had gotten to pull Sanji’s ship… Was Momoo that monster?

“Oh, you stupid thing!”

The aged voice drew my attention, and I wandered between the houses as I searched for its source. It didn’t seem too far away, and my guess was that if I cut through a few rows to my left I’d eventually find the source.

_Craaaaaack_

Unfortunately, the windows of the houses had all shattered and glass littered the ground. In my rush to find the voice before I lost track of where I had heard it from, I had stupidly not been watching where I was placing my feet and as a result some of the glass cracked loudly underfoot.

“Who’s there? Show yourselves!”

Sighing, I made my way through the row of houses. While I tried to prevent myself from stepping on broken glass, the task proved to be impossible: every step I took resulted in another loud cracking of glass. Soon I had reached the corner of the house, and I peered around it in order to see what I was getting myself into before I stepped out from the alleyway and revealed myself.

There was a short elderly woman standing on guard next to a wagon overloaded with bursting sacks. From where I was standing, I couldn’t make out any definite shapes or edges but I figured it was items taken from the overturned houses. Her eyes searched around her wildly, strands of grey hair falling loose from the low ponytail they were scraped into. A blue buttoned shirt two sizes too large for her clung to her frame, the ends of which had been haphazardly shoved into the tan coloured shorts that also looked oversized for her.

“Is that you, Bo? I thought I told ya to scram! You ain’t getting anything else, ya hear?!”

This must be the old lady Genzo told me about. What was her name? Martha? Marna? Eh, whatever. I’m sure the old lady will remind me eventually. Hopefully she would tell me a little more about this island’s situation than my brief conversations with the other inhabitants did… With this in mind, I stepped out onto the carved out road and showed my hands to her as she spotted me. There was no reason to scare her more than she already was.

“Hey, it’s just me! Sorry about scaring you, didn’t realize where I was stepping.”

I walked towards her, closing the gap between us as her grey eyes scrutinized me carefully.

“I’ve never seen you around, youngin’. You a stranger?”

“Just passing through,” I paused and looked around at the dilapidated buildings to emphasis my point, “although there isn’t much to see here.”

She nodded solemnly at my words, her eyes considering me for a moment longer before turning her attention to the sacks in the cart. She stuffed the bag up with items that had fallen out; a toy, a picture, a brush, before tying it closed with a rope.

“Yeah, Gosa’s not what these old bones remember it to be, I’ll tell you that much. The Fishmen have made sure of that.”

“What happened?”

“Someone couldn’t pay the monthly tribute.” She noticed my shocked expression when she turned back towards me after securing everything to the over packed cart, “We’re dealing with real monsters here, girlie. If one can’t pay, we all suffer. Although, I think the destruction of Gosa was more of a message to the other villages…” She made a move to start pulling the cart, but I stopped her before she could strain herself.

“Don’t strain yourself. I’ll pull the cart as long as you tell me what I want to know.”

She croaked out a laughter and gestured for me to grab onto the cart. It was heavy, but the muscle I had worked for under Kura’s critical eyes awarded me the strength to pull it with ease.

“Ah, you youngin’s. Never afraid to do say what’s on their mind… Youth sure is a wonderful time.”

“C’mon, grandma. You’re looking pretty spry yourself.” She started walking, setting a slow pace as I followed alongside her. Gesturing with a sharp nod of my head, “What’s all this for, anyway?”

“Now watch it, youngin’! I’ll have you know I’ve recently become the cool great grandmother.” She paused, and I could tell she was waiting for a congratulations I didn’t plan on giving. When she realized this, she huffed and continued, “And the name’s Mara. Elder Mara. I’ve been trying to return what little I could to the Gosa survivors, but that insufferable Genzo stopped me from coming back after he found out what I was doing.”

We took a turn, and I realized that we were back on the road leading to Cocoyashi. She steadied the items on the cart as I pulled the wooden structure out of the rut that Momoo created and onto the smooth dirt road. I waited for the old lady to return to my side before continuing with her.

“Nami returned, so I figured I’d take my chance and sneak out to grab everything I could. Genzo really dotes on her, y’know.” She brushed the strands that had fallen out from the ponytail back, the sweat that had soaked her head kept the strands in place, “The poor little thing’s been working hard for nearly a decade for Cocoyashi’s sake, after all.”

So the villagers still liked Nami, and the sheriff-mayor seemed to like the Arlong Pirate as well. Clearly, there was more going on under the surface here. Luffy was right to trust Nami. I didn’t want to ask anything more about the past of the navigator. Prying into another’s past was not my business and it was not the business of others to reveal it.

With this in mind, I changed the subject.

“Who’s Bo?”

“Ahh… You’ve probably met him on the way here. A Jellyfish-man. He’s one of the more lenient of the Fishmen, that is, if you give him a trinket or two to keep him quiet.” She sighed, “…He’s the worst monster out of all the Fishmen. Why? Because he doesn’t act like a monster. He sometimes just hangs around the villages, asking all sorts of questions and getting answers that I think he only half listens to. A real space case. He collects human things, likes looking at them. But then he has to go and remind you that his loyalties lie with the real monster, Arlong. He’s a Fishman, after all.”

Her gaze went far into the distance as I thought about the Fishman I had met. It was like Elder Mara said, he didn’t seem like such an awful guy, and it looked like he didn’t care too much about whether or not Arlong’s operation was going smoothly…

“So, do you usually tell Fishmen to ‘scram’?” She laughed at this, a smile blossoming on her face.

“Oh no, dearie. That’s just one of the perks of reaching my age: you get too old!” She laughed again as she saw the confusion on my face, “Youngin’, I’m too old for grudges. You don’t realise it now, but it takes a lot of energy. Energy I just don’t have anymore. Besides, I’m too senile to keep track of ‘em anyway!”

Laughing with her, we reached the spot where I had come across Bo, indicating that Cocoyashi was only a few more hills away.

“Would you happen to know anything about the Bell family? They would’ve lived in Gosa village… well, at the very least around forty years ago.”

Grist Bell, although he often seemed far older – the salt and pepper hair and lines that had already sunken into his skin – was actually around the same age as my father. If I remember correctly, Grist was slightly older by a few years. He often told me stories of growing up in Gosa village before moving in with the Sireons to work as a butler as a young teenager. Seeing as my father had turned forty recently, and Kura was two years younger (she had told me after an especially harsh training session when I let slip that I took her for an early-forties-year-old woman), then Grist’s family had to have lived on the island at least forty years ago.

“The Bell family? There’s been no such family name during my life in Gosa.” She slapped my wrist lightly before my thoughts could go anywhere, “And don’t you dare take that to mean I don’t remember in my old age.”

“Then how can you say there weren’t any Bells in Gosa? A family friend, Grist Bell, grew up here!”

It didn’t make any sense. Grist said himself that he grew up in Gosa: he told me about the palm trees he and his friends climbed on a dare, the time he got the small scar on his thumb from trying to get one fishhook out with another one – the fishermen didn’t let him near their boats for years!

“Grist? Now that’s a familiar name. Gristlock Bellwether, people called him Grist, used to live in Gosa. He sailed with the marines when he turned old enough for his mother to be unable to stop him. He came back every now and then, the children loved him. Eventually he settled down with Elian Coris, in a nice little house by the sea.” She sighed sadly, “Unfortunately, he died during battle about forty years ago. The marines came to tell poor Elian and the girl was understandably heartbroken. They were meant to be wed. She left Gosa soon after, and we never knew what became of her.”

My heart pounded in my chest as I listened to the old woman speak. Did this mean that Grist had lied to me? All these years, was he pretending to be someone he wasn’t?

“The woman, did she have any children?”

“No. Elian’s family firmly believed in marriage before children, they were stuck in the past, I think. Elian had a strict curfew and she never broke it. Not even once.”

The rest of the walk was done in silence. The wheels of the cart creaked loudly as they made their way over the small dents and pebbles on the path. My mind was consumed with questions about Grist’s past and why he had lied. If not Gosa, then where did he come from? How did he get to Sireon Island that my great grandfather purchased for our family? Did Kairius know? Did father?

An unsettling feeling of dread crept up on me as I thought more about it. What if I was the only one who hadn’t known? Was there anything else that they didn’t tell me? Why would they-

“Ah, it seems like some sort of commotion is going on.”

Pulled out of my spiralling thoughts by the old woman’s voice, I looked up from the dirt road. Cocoyashi village had crept up on me, the loud sound of several voices coming from the center of the village had gotten me curious, and I buried my previous thoughts as I picked up my pace.

“Come on, Elder Mara. Let’s go see what’s happening.” She nodded in agreement, and we soon found ourselves surrounded by the buildings that made up Cocoyashi village. Following the increasing volume of voices, we made our way further into the wooden settlement.

“Here’s good enough, dearie. Leave the cart here.” Elder Mara spoke as we neared the side of a building, the voices loud enough to be heard clearly as they spoke from the main road, which we were about to step onto.

“Oh, Kaili!” The familiar voice got my attention as I was releasing the handles of the cart, ensuring that nothing was going to fall before I turned to the Straw Hat. He was waving wildly at me with a wide grin on his face.

“I’ll go on ahead, youngin’. Thanks for the help.” Elder Mara left with a smile as she noticed the two of us recognize each other and scurried off towards the voices.

I wiped my hands together as I walked up to Luffy, who was sitting underneath a palm tree. The palm tree in question was in the direct line of sight of the crowd that had gathered in the main road.

“This is the last straw!”

“Let’s get those fish-faces!”

“This’ll be the last day we live under their rule!”

They were fired up, each having some sort of improvised weapon in their hands and what little I could pick out from the multitude of voices sounded like the start of a revolt.

“What’s going on here, Luffy?” I turned to the pirate as I asked, hoping that he had at least understood something of the situation that was happening in front of him.

“I dunno. Everyone seems really excited about something.” He shrugged as he said this, but I saw him perk up as his gaze trailed something behind me.

“Everyone, stop!”

Turning back around, I saw Nami standing in front of the crowd. She seemed to be out of breath, her voice raspy as she spoke, and as she approached the crowd I could see Genzo and a blue haired woman make their way through the people. Luffy stood up, dusting off his clothes and made his way closer to the scene. I followed him.

“Just a little more! Just wait a little longer, guys! I’m going to try again and save up the money. It’ll be easy this time, so give me another chance!”

The crowd was silent, but their faces portrayed the sadness that none of them would voice at the navigator’s desperate words. Genzo walked forwards and enveloped her in a tight hug.

“You’ve done enough. You’ve fought well for us, but you can stop now…” He clung to her tighter, “Joining them must’ve been even more painful for you than death! You fought very well.”

He pulled away from her, placing his hands on her shoulders as he looked her in the eye.

“Leave this village – and this island – behind.”

“But-!”

“He’s right, Nami. You’re crafty, and you have a dream.” The blue haired woman spoke with a smile on her face, the rest of the crowd slowly mirroring her caring look as they watched Nami.

“Nojiko! Everyone…!” Nami backed up from the crowd, drawing a dagger and aiming it at them, “Stop it, I won’t let you go! I don’t want everyone else to be hurt by them!”

Her voice was panicked, and it rang out with the concern she had for the villagers.

“We know, Nami.” Genzo spoke, stepping forwards and gripping the blade of the dagger that Nami held limply, “We know that we’ll probably die at their hands.”

“It’s no use, Nami. We’ve made up our minds!” Another man spoke, a black bandana was wrapped around his head with a red ‘plus’ sign on it. The other villagers nodded in agreement, their grips tightening on their makeshift weapons.

“Now step aside, Nami!” Nami flinched at Genzo’s words, lowering the dagger that dripped with the man’s blood as he raised his sword and began marching, “Forwards, everyone! We might not win, but we’ll give those fiends a good fight!”

The crowd followed Genzo as they made their way down the road and turned out of sight to take the road to Arlong Park. In the midst of the crowd, I saw the figure of Elder Mara running with them as she held what looked like a curtain rod. Her eyes met mine for a moment, and she sent me a determined smile that twisted itself around my heart and squeezed tightly.

“ **ARLONG!** ” My eyes met with the sight of Nami slumped onto the ground, digging her dagger deep into her tattooed arm repeatedly as she screamed out the Fishman’s name in blind rage, “ **ARLONG! ARLONG! ARLONG! AR–!** ”

Luffy had appeared by her side, holding her arm and preventing her from bringing it down into her flesh again. The captain had a frown on his face as he stared down at Nami, who turned her head to meet his gaze.

“What do you want!? You don’t know anything! You don’t know what’s happened on this island for the past eight years!” It seems that she calmed down with Luffy’s interference, her voice no longer a raging scream but now just a saddened shout.

“Yeah. I don’t know anything.”

“This has nothing to do with you!” Nami grabbed at the dirt beneath her and flung it backwards at Luffy as she hung her head, “I told you, leave the damn island already!”

“Yeah. You told me.” Luffy’s deadpan answer finally caused her to break down, sobbing as she continued throwing clouds of dirt at him in frustration. He said nothing, and waited.

My body suddenly clued into the approach of Zoro’s sword, and I turned to see the swordsman sit down under the shade of an umbrella. His hand pulled the sword from its place in his haramaki and rested it against his shoulder as he crossed one leg over the other. Sanji stood with his back towards the scene, and I could see the trail of smoke that billowed from the cigarette that no doubt hung from his lips. A third figure also had his back towards the scene, sitting with his head hunched over and his legs crossed as he sat on the ground. It took me a moment to realize that it was the long-nosed Usopp, a smile spreading across my face before it dropped completely as I sensed the seriousness of the situation.

Cluing into what they were doing, I leaned up against the nearest building and refused to turn my gaze towards the scene between a captain and his navigator. It seems we were now all waiting for Nami to ask Luffy for help, and a rush of admiration flooded my body as the Straw Hat crew all acknowledged and anticipated helping their own, but none would do it without the expressed request from the member closest to the situation.

In other words, they wouldn’t dabble where they had no business. They were waiting for Nami to give them a reason.

And I’d be lying if I said that standing here with them didn’t make me feel like I was looking in on a scene reserved for nakama only. After all, every member of the Straw Hat crew were standing here, waiting. Silently saying: “We’re here for you. Say the words, and we’ll handle everything.” And this warm feeling enveloped me as I fully understood the net of security that the Straw Hat crew offered their nakama. That complete and unconditional belief that no matter what, you’d always have these competent crewmates to back you up.

And it seemed that Nami understood that now, too.

“Luffy… Help me.” Nami’s voice quaked, and her sniffles made themselves known. But the wait was over. I could hear Luffy walk away from Nami, taking a few steps before answering her plea for help.

“ **Okay!** ”

Luffy’s shout stirred the three men waiting for him, and as he continued walking towards them Zoro and Usopp stood up and Sanji shifted his weight from one foot to the other. Following their lead, I pushed myself from the wooden planks of the building, waiting for him to reach the group while still refusing to look back at Nami and Luffy.

“Let’s go.”

“Right!”

It was a simple command, just as his shout had been. But it inspired a great deal of emotion within me as the usually upbeat captain retained his serious demeanor. The three men who answered him showed just as much seriousness at their captain’s order, starting to walk with him as he started to lead his crew down the same road the villagers had taken.

But what if I got in their way?

And all at once, I felt the rift between myself and the Straw Hat crew open itself up again due to my hesitance. I had yet to move from my spot, my mind suddenly asking questions that my body and heart had forgotten in the moment. Would they take offence to me travelling with them? With wanting to fight with them? What would I say? That I wanted to get my staff back from Bo the Jellyfish-man, which was admittedly a part of my reasoning for fighting? That I wanted to continue gaining fight experience? That I wanted to fight for Nami and Elder Mara’s freedom?

…That I wanted to feel like I was a part of Luffy’s crew while I still could?

“Kaili.” Luffy stopped, and as a result the others did too. My eyes looked up to see his short black hair as he stood in front of the three men who patiently waited for him to lead them into their battle. He didn’t turn around to face me, and if he hadn’t stopped I would’ve thought it was just my imagination getting the best of me.

“Let’s go.” He started walking again.

That wasn’t my imagination. The same command that he had given to his crew, ordered again. To me. Me specifically. He wanted me to come with them, and fight with them. He trusted in me enough to want my help in helping his nakama, so I did the only thing I could. The only thing I wanted to do.

“Right.”

I followed him.

* * *

***PLEASE NOTE***

* * *

***nakama** : while I prefer not to use Japanese words when writing an English story (as I find that it sometimes throws me off what I’m reading) One Piece’s ‘nakama’ carries a lot of weight to it. Too much to be translated into ‘friend’ or ‘crewmate’ in some cases, I believe. So, ‘nakama’ will be used in this story.

***-san/swan** : I’m also not a big fan of writing honorifics for English stories, but this is kind of Sanji’s ‘nickname’ for Nami, and translating it to ‘Miss Nami’ kind of makes it lose that nickname feel…

**-chan/chwan** : While not in the story yet, this naming convention also applies to Robin later on.

***anchor:** Bo means ‘downer’ by this.

***prawn** : Bo means ‘pawn’ and by this he means ‘human’.


	12. Battle at Arlong Park Pt. 1

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 12: Battle at Arlong Park Pt. 1

The walk to Arlong Park was silent. The tension in the air had somehow increased and my heart thundered at the seriousness of the goofy captain. Other than Zoro, the others hadn’t even glanced as I fell in line with them. The swordsman had given me a sharp sidelong glance with the hint of a scowl on his face before he turned forwards once more. The sky was darkening, the afternoon approaching slowly as we neared the Fishmen base. A cool wind blew, and with it a cloud of dirt swept across the road.

When it cleared, Arlong Park was in view.

The crowd of villagers from Cocoyashi had gathered in front of the elaborate gates that lead into Arlong Park. As we got closer, I could spot Elder Mara as she was near the back of the crowd that had formed in front of the wall that enclosed Arlong Park. Yosaku and Johnny were standing in front of the gates, guarding it as if they had prevented the villagers from fighting the Fishmen.

“Move aside.”

Luffy’s voice snapped the villagers out of their daze, and they all looked at one another before a familiar old voice spoke up, “Well you heard the man. Move outta the way!”

Elder Mara started clearing a path for us, shooing away those that remained still with a fierce look and a dismissive wave of her hands. While still uncertain at our arrival, the crowd parted at the insistence of the old woman. Genzo and the blue haired woman – Nojiko, if I recalled – could only stare at us as Yosaku and Johnny removed their swords from the ground. They were beaten badly, but as they saw us their faces lit up with wide grins and they stepped aside after calling out a greeting to Luffy.

**Ka-Boom!!**

However, even the cheerful greeting of those two couldn’t lift the serious expression from the straw hat-less man as he reeled his arm back and shattered the gate without using his Devil Fruit powers as the four of us hung back to avoid the blast.

“Which one of you is Arlong?” Luffy’s voice rang out as he immediately started walking through the cloud of smoke that came from the destruction of the gate without waiting for a reply. Said reply came moments later.

“That would be me.” The smoke cleared, and there were several Fishmen surrounding one that spoke. He was sitting on what looked to be a ‘throne’, or at least, the way that he reclined in the stone chair seemed to be the same way a king would sit in his castle.

“I’m Luffy.”

“Is that so? And what’s a Luffy?”

 “A pirate!”

During the conversation between the two, I took the time to study what I could of the tyrant Fishman known as Arlong. He was larger than most of the Fishmen surrounding him. That much was easy to tell even when he was sitting down. His skin was a light blue tone, much like Bo’s skin tone, and he had webbing between his fingers. A red tattoo of the same mark on Bo’s chest displayed itself on his lower left arm. The most notable feature of the Fishman leader was the saw-shaped nose that protruded from his face. Long black hair reached down to his shoulders and a brown ushanka adorned his head. A shark fin protruded from the nape of his neck. Arlong's attire is composed of a short-sleeved, unbuttoned yellow shirt decorated by many black lightning-like spots, brown shorts that reached down to his knees, a purple sash around the waist and simple sandals.

“Hold it right there.”

“Where do you think you’re going?” The Fishman lackey laughed, “You need to run things by us first, kiddo.”

Luffy ignored the two Fishmen that approached him and kept walking towards Arlong. Eventually they stepped in front of him, barring his path, and one placed a webbed hand on his shoulder.

“Outta my way.”

Luffy reached up and forced the heads of the Fishmen together, eliminating his obstacle quickly as they fell to the floor – unconscious – and he continued towards Arlong.

“What business do you have with me, pirate?”

Zoro and Sanji started to move forwards as Luffy silently pulled his fist back. Usopp and I quickly scurried after them as Luffy landed a punch on the Fishman pirate leader, sending him straight into the wall on the other side of Arlong Park and the saw-nosed Fishman created another hole in the perimeter wall of the pirate base. The astounding strength that Luffy had in his normal, non-GumGum powered fist would’ve surprised me if I didn’t know how much of a monster the Straw Hat captain was. But, it seemed to have that effect on the resident human _and_ Fishmen population.

“Lord Arlong!”

Arlong raised his head, his fierce light blue eyes drilled into Luffy’s head as he glared at the man who punched him. From his new position, reclining against the broken stone wall with the conveniently ready-made armrests, I could see that the man was quite muscular and had a long, angular, jaw. A large red Sun was tattooed on his left pectoral, in the same place that Bo had his Arlong Pirates tattoo. Speaking of Bo, as the four of us approached Luffy at a slow pace, I couldn’t see him anywhere in the throng of Fishmen pirates.

“Do you realize what you just-?” Arlong’s growl was cut off by Luffy, who ignored his words.

“ **You made our navigator cry!!** ”

A moment passed before the Fishmen started running towards Luffy, fury clouding their judgement.

“Human scum!”

“How dare you insult Arlong!?”

“You must be crazy! We’ll just have to put you out of your misery!”

However, they didn’t have the chance to get anywhere close to Luffy. We had caught up to the rubber man and Sanji dealt with the approaching Fishmen easily with a flurry of kicks. As I watched Sanji ward off the Fishmen lackeys, I released Kikoeru from its holster and rested the weapon on my shoulder as I readied myself for another battle.

“Stay out of this, you shitty fish!” Sanji dealt with the last of them before turning to Luffy with a sigh, “You always have to dive right in, don’t you?”

“But it’s not like I’d lose on my own.”

“I’m not worried about that, idiot!” He adjusted his tie as a new cloud of smoke escaped from his lips, “Just save a little for the rest of us.”

“Oh! Okay.”

“I-I don’t mind if you don’t share, Luffy.” Usopp joined in, a nervous sweat already showing itself on his skin as he placed his hands on his hips in an attempt to appear confident.

“How generous of you, Usopp…” Zoro also joined the conversation, sending Usopp a look over his shoulder (as he had moved to the back of the group).

“Ahh! Mademoiselle, did you see how cool I was?” Sanji had turned back towards me and offered his hand to me as I reached the two Fishmen that Luffy had knocked out, “Allow me to help you, Mademoiselle~!”

Hesitating briefly, I stared at his outstretched hand. After a moment, I took his gesture as a politeness and accepted it in equal measure. His long fingers closed gently over mine as he led me over the unmoving body of the Fishman I had planted my foot on to reach the Straw Hat Pirates.

“Thank you, Sanji.” I let his previous comment go unacknowledged, unsure how to answer that. I slipped my hand out of his as both my feet touched the tiled ground, doing my best to ignore the love-struck look he was giving me.

“Don’t even speak of it, Mademoiselle! Any respectable gentleman would help a beautiful lady such as yourself…”

His words faded as I looked over the Fishmen that remained. Most of the Fishmen that had rushed Sanji had been effectively dealt with, but there were still some that had not been knocked out with Sanji’s kicks. Out of all of them, three had chosen not to attack. These three muscular Fishmen seemed confident and relaxed, talking amongst themselves as they watched us carefully. My guess was that they were the ‘upper-class’ fighters of the Arlong Pirates.

The one with the thick lips was blue skinned and a red tattoo was visible on his right shoulder. He wore a striped blue vest, dark brown leather pants that were cut off halfway down his shins and sandals.  He wore a necklace made from what seemed like pearls incorporated with the fangs of some sort of creature. Short sandy blond hair sprouted from his head, the bangs parted in the middle and showed his small eyes and thin eyebrows. He was the slimmest of the three Fishmen.

 One wore a blue gi, the pants coming down to his knees, with a black belt tied securely around his waist. The blue fabric revealed the Fishman’s muscular chest, and the tattoo of a red sun peaked out from its place on the right side of his chest. His grey-skinned arms were crossed, and large fins protruded from both of his muscular arms. The long black hair that was tied into a straight ponytail reminded me of a manta ray.

The last one looked like an octopus Fishman, having six arms that had what looked like to be suction cups on the backs of them and two legs. He had pink coloured skin and grey hair which radiated outwards from his head in five spikes. He lacked the webbing between his fingers, like Bo, and had the tattoo of a red sun on his forehead. His apparel consisted of a red and yellow striped outfit that stopped at his knees with simple sandals adorning his feet. A sash was tied around his waist.

Sanji’s voice came back into focus after my assessment of the Fishmen.

“…There’s no reason for you to exert yourself, Mademoiselle~! Perhaps I could offer you a–”

“Now hold on there, loverboy*.” I placed my hand on his chest and moved him out of my way, taking my place next to Luffy as Sanji trailed behind me, “Surely you’re not suggesting that I sit this one out? Because if you are, I’m gonna make something clear to you. _Crystal clear_.”

He had stepped forwards to stand beside me, and I eyed him with a fierce look that I hoped would get the message across. Sure, he was a nice guy and all… But I had no need for his gestures if he believed I should sit out on fights, twiddling my thumbs and waiting for them to take care of everything. It probably had something to do with that lovey-dovey chivalry or whatever he had going on.

“I’m a fighter above all else. I don’t care what sort of issues you have with that, understood? Telling me not to fight is an insult, and if you do so again I’m afraid it won’t end well for you.”

There were four of them and five of us, after all. Luffy would defeat Arlong, so there were only three left for us to deal with. As I saw it, Zoro, Sanji, and I could fight them and Usopp could provide support – he _is_ the sniper, after all.

“Ahhhhh~! Mademoiselle is stunning even when she’s threatening me~!!”

…I had the sneaking suspicion that everything I said went in one ear and out of the other, yet still resulted in the same reaction. Well, at the very least he understood that it was a threat.

“Pirates, eh? So that’s what the deal is. You were after Nami from the very start,” Arlong’s voice brought the attention back to the task at hand, “Shahahaha! But you’re just five inferior creatures. What could you possibly do?!”

At Arlong’s words, the octopus Fishman started to move towards the edge of the water that pooled in front of the five story building. There was a metal gate which was currently open, used to block the entrance of any unwanted ships. That meant that the water was seawater… I took a half-step back at the realization and waited to see what the six-handed Fishman would do.

“Fools! You’re not worth Arlong’s time! _He’ll_ be more than enough!”

After speaking, the octopus man then made the sound of a trumpet, calling something from the water. A moment passed before the ground started shaking. The previously still water sloshed onto the stone ground of Arlong Park as a shape moved through the open metal gates, a mound of water from the ocean rose and covered the creature as it approached.

“W-What is it?!” Usopp’s outcries were promptly ignored as I readied Kikoeru.

“Come out, Momoo!”

“The sea monster from the Grand Line that destroyed the town of Gosa!?”

The water drained from the monster’s body, and the sea monster was revealed. Momoo was in fact the giant green spotted sea-cow thing which had given us a ride to Arlong Park. Well, he almost took us to Arlong Park.

“Aaaah!! It’s here!!” Usopp didn’t seem to notice the shape it was in, and yelled at the top of his lungs. It was rather comical, and the serious atmosphere that had weighed on me since the start of our march on Arlong Park suddenly lifted.

Momoo leaned down to get a better view of us. As he noticed Luffy and Sanji, he visibly flinched and what looked to be tears started to leak from his eyes.

“Oh, it’s just him.”

“So the shitty oversized hippo works for these guys.” 

“Wait! Momoo! Where are you going?!” The creature had slowly turned and sunk back into the water as the octopus called out. It started to swim away from Arlong Park with a whine as it ignored the octopus’s questions.

“ **Momoo. What are you doing**?” Momoo stopped at Arlong’s voice, his trembling causing ripples in the water, “Well, if you want to run away… I won’t stop you. **Go ahead, Momoo.** ”

Arlong’s threat had quickly changed the sea-cow’s plans, as he turned back around and readied himself to attack.

“Here he comes!” Usopp pressed himself up against the wall of Arlong Park as he yelled out.

“Follow after Momoo!”

“Let’s show those insolent nothings how their lives will end!”

The Fishmen who were still able to fight charged us as well. However, the three that had stood out to me before didn’t join them as they patiently waited in the sidelines. Zoro’s sword sang out and I realized that he had started drawing it from his sheathe. Sanji shifted his weight, and Usopp revealed his weapon of choice as the enemy bore down on us: a slingshot. Not what I expected from the sniper, but I shrugged at the thought and tightened my grip on Kikoeru and slid into my stance.

“I’ve had it!” We all paused at Luffy’s exclamation, “This is a waste of time!”

He planted his feet into the stone, ignoring the approach of the Fishmen on land and the sea creature in the water.

“What’s he doing?” Sanji took blew out another cloud of smoke as he spoke.

“…He’s going to do something idiotic right now, isn’t he?” I voiced my thoughts as we all warily watched at the captain.

“I have a bad feeling about this...” Zoro spoke as the rubber-man started twisting his upper body around, winding himself up. When his spins started slowing down he came to a stop as he faced Momoo. He stretched his arms out and grabbed the sea-cow by the horns.

“Oi, run for it!” Zoro waved his hand towards the three of us as he spoke.

Usopp wasted no time and started running before Zoro had finished speaking. I was close behind him, not particularly wanting to be in the way of whatever crazy attack Luffy had planned that involved the giant sea-cow and a wound up body.

“What’s he doing?!”

“I don’t know, just run!”

Sanji and Zoro were still watching Luffy, their voices getting farther and farther away as Usopp and I rounded the corner of Arlong Park. Flattening my back against the building as Kikoeru hummed in my hands, I waited for Luffy to finish whatever he was doing.

“ **Gum-Gum Pinwheel!** ”

**Ka-Boom!**

The building I had pressed myself into shook as a result of an impact. Some part of Arlong Park had been destroyed. If I had to guess, it was part – if not all – of the stone awning that protruded from the building, providing shade for Arlong as he sat in his chair. As Usopp let out a breath and made a move to return to Luffy, I reached out a hand to stop him. He gave me a confused look, but said nothing and made no further attempt to return just yet. I took the moment to tie back my light blonde hair into a ponytail, preparing for the fight between the more powerful members.

…

“I didn’t come here to waste time on small fry!”

…

“I came here to clobber _you_!”

…

**Ker-Sploosh!**

Nodding at Usopp we both rounded the corner together, finding Zoro and Sanji wiping off the dirt that found itself on their clothes as a result from the dive they took to dodge Luffy’s attack. As we walked back towards Luffy, I took a moment to survey the damage. All of Arlong’s lackeys were effectively incapacitated, strewn about the Park and some unfortunate enough to be trapped underneath the rubble of the awning. Just as I had thought, part of the stone awning had collapsed. While some pillars remained standing most had fallen due to the sea-cow that collided with the structure, although most of the debris had been sent flying and now Arlong Park was scattered with large pieces of stone.

“Well that works out perfectly. I was just thinking about clobbering you, too.” Arlong growled this to Luffy, his voice dripping with murderous intent.

“Looks like we’ll have to get involved.” The ponytailed Fishman grumbled with a scowl on his face.

“What that pirate did to our comrades wasn’t nice!” The octopus spoke, pumping himself up.

“I’ll show you that humans are no match for Fishmen, _smek_.” The third Fishmen smacked his lips as he finished speaking, sending the five of us a glare.

“That was dangerous, you fool!”

“Are you trying to kill us, too?!”

Sanji and Usopp took the situation lightly, the former hitting Luffy on the head with his foot, the latter trying to shake some sense into him.

“Now the real players appear.” Zoro smirked as he spoke, his sword agreeing whole-heartedly with its owner’s growing excitement.

“It’s about time.” Kikoeru hummed with my words, also feeding off of my excitement.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Zoro’s eyes flicker over to my figure. The swordsman’s smirk grew a little larger at my words, but he made no vocal indication of his approval.

“Lord Arlong,” the manta ray Fishman spoke, “please don’t get worked up.”

“If you lose your temper and go on a rampage, you’ll destroy Arlong Park! _Smek._ ”

“We’ll take care of these guys!” The octopus Fishman turned towards us as he hunched over.

This motion was all it took to send Usopp running behind a pillar, pulling his goggles down over his eyes as he watched from afar. I found myself taking a cautious step back as the octopus man’s body expanded.

“That octopus is up to something.” Zoro made no move to do anything about the obvious statement, and simply watched the Fishman carefully.

“Oh really? I hadn’t realized.” My sarcastic comment was _not_ appreciated by the aforementioned swordsman.

“An octopus should be boiled in salt water, sliced, and seasoned with olive oil and paprika. It’s great with booze.” Sanji smirked at the octopus man as he spoke, a subtle threat presented in his words.

“There’s a little problem here, guys…”

My eyes flickered over to the pirate captain, but before I could figure out what problem he had the octopus man stole my attention as he straightened.

“Take this! Zero Vision: Hachi Ink Jet!”

Ink shot out of the Fishman’s mouth, and I quickly curled my body around Kikoeru’s staff as I rolled out of the way. Coming out of the dodge, I remained crouched and held Kikoeru behind me as I surveyed the situation. Sanji and Zoro had dodged the attack as well, but…

“Aaagh! I can’t see anything!”

…Luffy remained exactly where we left him. As a result, the ink now coated his body in a thick layer and the pirate frantically rubbed at his eyes in an attempt to return his vision.

“You idiot! Why didn’t you jump out of the way!?” Zoro’s question fell to deaf ears as Luffy continued to feebly wipe the ink away. While his figure was still darkened by the ink, much of it had drained off of his body and seeped into the ground. Unfortunately, his eyes were still compromised.

“Hey, Luffy! Run!” Usopp’s cry rang out, and a shadow fell over Luffy’s figure as the octopus Fishman raised a large piece of Arlong Park’s rubble over his head, intending to crush him.

“Yeah, that’s the problem… I’m stuck here.” Luffy attempted to lift his legs, but the stone he had anchored himself into held him in place, “M-my feet are stuck!”

My forehead found itself hitting my free palm as I sighed at Luffy’s lack of foresight. Of course he would get stuck, being a rubber man has its flaws after all. The octopus man swung the large piece of rubble down, and while my body jerked into action, it soon stalled as Sanji stood in front of Luffy and kicked the stone.

**Ka-boosh!**

Unsurprisingly, the stone crumbled into pieces, both cook and captain emerging unscathed.

“What have I done?” Sanji spoke as Luffy cheered at the dandy long-legs coming to the rescue, “Seems like I’ve wound up following one fool of a captain.”

“Agreed.” Zoro let out a slow breath as he responded to the cook’s words, seeming far too used to this situation.

“You could say that again.” I found myself responding under my breath before walking over to Luffy and trying to get Luffy out of his predicament.

Pulling on his leg, I could sense that the rubbery quality his body had taken on would not make freeing him easy. The higher I lifted his leg, the more resistance I encountered. As I let go of Luffy’s limb, it snapped back to its original position and Luffy’s body swayed lightly from the force.

“It’s gonna be hard to get him out, isn’t it?” I hummed in agreement as Usopp approached, watching as he carefully examined the position Luffy was in. Before long an idea came to him and he brought a closed fist into the palm of his hand, “Oh! I know what we can do!”

“Oh?”

“I’ll pull him so that his legs are stretched, and you try to wiggle his feet out. If you can shift him enough, maybe his foot will spring itself out of the ground when the… stretchy-ness… is on a different angle!”

With what little I knew about the qualities of rubber – or more specifically, the qualities of Luffy’s Gum-Gum body – it seemed like a feasible idea. Nodding my head at him and placing Kikoeru down gently on the ground, I cleared a spot of rubble so that I could kneel down comfortably as Usopp began pulling Luffy’s torso away from his legs. The different angle caused the cracks in the ground to spread a little farther from its initial diameter. As I pulled upwards on Luffy’s ink-stained leg, I could feel a slight shift of the stone as the rubber skin creaked at the movement. But, Luffy’s feet still remained planted in the ground. Luckily, I had an idea.

“Hey, Bo… Just how long are you going to lie there?”

My head snapped up at the sound of Arlong’s voice, and I quickly turned my attention towards him as I continued tugging on Luffy’s leg at different angles. Arlong was still reclining against the perimeter wall of Arlong Park, but he leaned his head back to look behind the wall to his left.

“That depends, captain. Is there a problem?” Bo’s voice reached my ears as the end of Kura’s training staff peaked over the top of the perimeter wall.

“Bo! That’s right, I forgot you came back from your walk!” The octopus man turned towards the perimeter wall and pointed three accusatory fingers just as Bo peered over, pulling himself up onto the wall, “Why didn’t you join us before?!”

“Oh, it’s you, bay-by!” His eyes left my figure as he surveyed the scene, “It seems you found yourself in quite a whirlpool of trouble, bay-by. You throwin’ your tail on the line for those prawns*?” He twirled the training staff idly as his gaze returned to me, waiting for a reply.

I pried some stone away from Luffy’s foot as I revaluated the situation. With Bo coming into the action, there were now five Fishmen and five of us. While what I had seen of Luffy and his crew was nothing short of awe-inspiring, I was hesitant to consider this battle as good as won. Zoro, even though he seemed to have spontaneously recovered, was still weakened by Mihawk’s attack. Sanji was still probably having a hard time with his ribs, and Usopp didn’t exactly seem reliable in a fight…

Perhaps I was overthinking things.

With this in mind, I decided to focus on the most important task right now: setting Luffy free so that we weren’t going to be fighting four on five _and_ trying to protect this idiot.

“Givin’ me the cold shoalder*?” My attention was drawn back to Bo as he spoke, but I quickly turned away from him and focused on Luffy. “C’mon bay-by, don’t leave me hanging!”

Ignoring his words, I pried enough stone away to open up a small hole in the ground. While Usopp was still pulling Luffy backwards, I could try to blow air into the hole and try to manipulate the wind underneath his foot and push upwards. Admittedly, I wasn’t entirely sure if it would work. The winds I could create on my own usually were preceded by doing large sweeping motions with my body, enabling me to visualize the current I wanted to create. While it should – in theory – work with air blown through my lips, I had never attempted it before. Controlling it in a confined space was also going to be a first attempt.

Ah well, if now’s not a good time to try things, I don’t know what is. After all, Luffy needs to get out of that stone and just pulling him farther away doesn’t seem to be doing much of anything.

Bending down, I took a deep breath and then blew out into the hole. Before I could get the wind under Luffy’s foot, I first had to create a sizable pathway in order to retain some sort of force behind the gust. Focusing my attention on the currents the wind followed as it ran down Luffy’s leg and towards his foot, I slowly managed to manipulate those currents so that they were slowly pushing against the stone but were still gentle when brushing up against Luffy’s skin. It was a very slow and tedious process, requiring all of my attention. After a few moments I felt the tiles near Luffy’s feet lift slightly, shifting to account for the passage I was trying to create. Guiding the wind through the passage, I checked to see if it was wide enough to retain the force needed to push Luffy’s foot out of the ground. The wind could reach the sole of his foot easier than before, at least. It was enough to attempt it.

“Sheesh! There’s no need to be so prickly, little urchin!” Bo’s voice sounded close. Too close.

Before I could react to the staff that was swinging down towards me, a white sheath blocked its path. The swordsman followed his blade, and soon he was standing over me as he easily stopped the threat.

“She’s a little busy at the moment, jellyfish.”

With one hand gripped around his sword, Zoro’s muscles coiled and sent Kura’s staff flying through the air. My eyes followed its arc, tracing its path as it landed on the strip of tiled ground alongside the perimeter wall on the Fishmen’s side. By the time I had returned my view to Zoro, Bo had already created some distance between the swordsman and himself as they stared each other down. He crept towards the staff, making his way around the waterway.

“Woman, hurry up and get Luffy out of his mess.” The green haired man stepped away from me, returning his sights on the octopus Fishman and unsheathing his singing sword, “These fish aren’t the ones doing the terrorizing anymore. We are.”

Nodding to him, even though he couldn’t see me at this point, I spared a second to glance at my surroundings. Sanji seemed to have paired off with the manta ray and Zoro was staring down the octopus. Bo was hanging back as he regained Kura’s staff and merely looked on as the other Fishmen readied themselves to fight. The large-lipped Fishman didn’t seem too intent on fighting. Although, that could easily change at any moment. With this in mind, I quickly turned back to Luffy.

Filling my lungs once more, I released the air into the hole. Easily guiding the wind through the pathway I made, I used the space to speed up the wind as it found its way underneath Luffy’s foot. I then directed the wind upwards. For a moment, the air simply squeezed itself through the cracks in the stone. However, as I concentrated the air’s upward movement to happen directly under Luffy’s foot and preventing it from rising through the cracks. Soon I could see Luffy’s foot starting to shift and I could feel it rise at least an inch.

Before I could make a move to pull Luffy’s foot up with my hands, it sprung free. It whipped back towards Luffy, and as it did so Usopp’s grip on the captain’s torso began to slip. When the leg regained its original length, the force behind it knocked Usopp off-balance enough for Luffy to slip from his grasp.

“Watch out!” Usopp’s warning came just in time.

Quickly flattening myself to the ground I felt the wind rush over me as Luffy’s body whipped by. Unfortunately, the large-lipped Fishman didn’t listen to Usopp’s warning and was caught off guard completely when Luffy collided with him and knocked him to the ground.

“Darn it, I’m back here again.” Luffy sprang back upright, one leg freed but the other still deeply rooted into the stone, “Well, at least I have one leg back now!”

I resisted the urge to pinch the grin off of his ink-stained face.

“Why, you…” The Fishman was back up, and he had his sights set on Usopp, “It seems like you really want me to hurt you.” At that, Usopp started running and the Fishman started chasing him.

I didn’t have too much time to watch them, though. Quickly lifting myself off the ground to push myself forwards, I narrowly avoided Bo’s attack. The tip of the staff just barely scraped over the leather of my boots before it shattered the tiled ground on impact. My hands latched themselves to Kikoeru before I flung my legs over my head and planted them onto the ground as my muscles pulled my torso upright. Now standing, I quickly turned to intercept another attack from Bo before shoving Kura’s staff off of Kikoeru and leaping backwards to give myself some distance: at least providing me with a few moments before Bo’s next attack.

Unfortunately, I could no longer help Luffy out of his predicament with Bo distracting me.

“I’m sick of watching this. Move, I thought up a fun game.” Arlong made himself known as he walked towards Luffy.

“Lord Arlong?” The manta ray stepped aside to allow Arlong through.

“Game?” The octopus did the same.

“Ooooh sounds like a swell idea, Arlong!” Bo placed one end of Kura’s staff on the ground as he placed his weight on it, turning away from me slightly to watch the leader of the Arlong Pirates.

“I’m going to beat you up!” Luffy threw a Gum-Gum punch, but Arlong dodged it easily and grabbed onto his wrist before it could snap back.

“Do you really think you inferior beings can beat us?”

“Yeah, actually.”

“We do! Now give me my arm back!”

“Sounds like he has something to say.”

Sanji, Luffy and Zoro seemed sure of themselves and their ability to defeat these Fishmen. While a seed of doubt still found itself rooted in the recesses of my mind, I also answered Arlong’s question “Why don’t we find out?”

He said nothing as he reached Luffy and bent down, his hand digging into the stone with ease. Without even breaking a sweat Arlong pulled up a chunk of the stone encasing Luffy’s foot, holding the captain high above his head.

“What the?! Put me down!”

“People who’ve eaten the Devil Fruit and gained its powers can’t swim! Though, anyone in your position would sink with or without powers! Shahahaha!”

“He’s gonna throw him into the ocean?!” Zoro voiced all of our concerns as my heart raced for Luffy.

“Gum-Gum Pistol!”

Luffy’s fist was caught in between Arlong’s sharp teeth, and he gave out a cry of pain.

“Gum-Gum Whip!”

Luffy’s foot made contact with Arlong’s side, but the Fishman didn’t seem fazed by the poorly executed kick. Luffy then twisted his head and bit into Arlong’s arm, causing the shark to release his arm from his teeth. However, the momentary relief that crept through my system at the return of Luffy’s arm (in one piece, might I add) was quickly washed away by horror as Arlong countered by throwing Luffy over the walls of Arlong Park…

**SPLASH!**

…And into the water beyond.

* * *

***PLEASE NOTE***

* * *

***Loverboy** : Kaili means this as a way of indicating Sanji’s tendency for amorous gestures towards every woman he sees – ‘ero-cook’ as some would say. As she’s a little hesitant to say something that ‘insulting’, she goes for the ‘tamer’ replacement. Sanji might take it the wrong way, though…

***shoalder:** Bo means shoulder.


	13. Battle at Arlong Park Pt. 2

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 13: Battle at Arlong Park Pt. 2

“Luffy–!”

My concerned shout was cut off by Bo grabbing Kura’s staff and slamming it onto the ground in front of me, halting my instinctive advance towards the water where Luffy disappeared.

“Now, now, bay-by. I’d think your attention is better directed towards me, yeah?” Without waiting to finish his sentence, he advanced and Kura’s staff swung downwards once more. This time, he was aiming for me. Holding Kikoeru diagonally in front of me, the steady string of blows slid off the staff as Bo twirled Kura’s staff around like it was weightless.

THUNK! THUNK! THUNK! THUNK!

The sound cracked loudly in the air, as the staffs collided. I flinched at the sound of the impact: the amount of force behind all of those attacks would surely break a number of bones should they land. Even the vibrations that ran throughout the whole of Kikoeru as they accompanied the cracking sound, created a residual impact of the onslaught. The tight grip I had on my weapon served to work against me as my body jarred against each impact, my jaw clenched as I tried to keep my tensing muscles relaxed.

While gripping Kikoeru so tightly hurt when the vibrations of the impact spread throughout the dual glaive, I refused the thought of loosening my grip. Easing up even an inch in the face of this Fishman’s strength would result in Kikoeru being flung from my grasp. So, I stumbled backwards as I painfully deflected the attacks, trying to gain some ground – and time – to figure out how to combat Bo’s fluid advance.

Motion behind Bo caught my attention, and a quick glance told me that the others had started fighting as well. Zoro had paired off with the octopus man, and Sanji was currently kicking the manta ray Fishman. The former had me concerned, his sword was calling out softly in a shrill pitch, ebbing and flowing like the tide with its intensity. Something was wrong. Scrutinizing the owner of the crying sword, I found that his shoulders heaved as he drew in air. His skin was sheen with sweat, and the fight with the Fishman had barely even begun. He was in pain. That’s what his sword was trying to tell me with its wailing.

“Bahahaha! Am I still not getting your attention, little urchin?” He continued when my eyes slid back to his form, “Well, we can’t have that! Let’s see if I can get your attention by having you swim up-stream then!”

_Tap!_

Kura’s staff met mine once more by the time I had returned my attention to my own battle. But instead of putting enough force behind the blow to bounce the staff off of Kikoeru, he seemed to merely be resting his staff over Kikoeru. Confused, I hesitated in maneuvering Kikoeru underneath Kura’s staff and slide under the weapon before trying to cut at Bo’s stomach as I leapt passed him (on his right, of course. I was already too close to the seawater for comfort) – as I had planned to do. Unfortunately, I hesitated a second too long and Bo started pushing against Kikoeru.

My body didn’t bend at the opposition, but my feet started to slip from underneath me as I tried to remain upright. Several consecutive glances downwards informed me of why I was sliding back so easily when Bo was bearing down on me: the tiles near the waterway (where we were currently fighting) were wet from the Fishmen who jumped into the water and stepped out of it. The seawater had yet to dry off from the day’s traffic, and the friction I had lost because of the added liquid did not help as I struggled feebly against Bo.

After a few moments of my useless attempts, I had realized that trying to stop Bo from pushing me was not the plan I should be following. I had to use his superior strength against him and try to shift to the right of Kura’s staff, giving me the chance to circle around the Fishman and land a blow after I redirected the force he was pushing me with to my left. He would then be off-balance, and I could get the upper-hand. With a deep breath, I shifted an inch to the side.

Then another one.

I could feel Kura’s staff starting to edge down Kikoeru’s black wood, but then my progress came to a screeching halt when Bo shifted the staff back into the center of Kikoeru. He grinned down at me as we squared off once more.

“You haven’t been at this very long, have you?” He shoved me back again and followed closely before continuing, “Your eyes are telling me everythin’ I need to know, bay-by!”

A harsh shove sent me back about a foot or so and I wobbled slightly in my stance in surprise. Rebalancing myself, I looked up in surprise when I felt the bladed tip of Kikoeru meet with resistance. That’s when I realized that Bo was a lot more dangerous than I had initially thought: Bo had been leading me away from the others, down the waterway’s path, and shoving me for one purpose. I was now cornered. Bo was in front of me, the seawater was to my left, and to my right was the perimeter wall…

And now, my back was practically brushing against the perimeter wall as well.

This meant that I could no longer swing Kikoeru in the arcs it needed in order to build up momentum for consecutive attacks. This meant that I had to go through Bo in order to get myself clear of obstacles, and I would either have to go left or right in order to do so. Warily glancing to the left as I shifted Kikoeru to a diagonal angle between Bo and myself, I knew that closer to the seawater was not the path I would choose. But did Bo know that?

I turned my gaze to him, concerned white-blue eyes clashing with smug coal ones. But as much as I tried to find the answer, Bo was unyielding. I couldn’t decipher anything in his gaze, and I started panicking. If Bo was able to know what I was planning, then soon enough Kura’s staff would make contact with my body. And with Bo’s insane strength behind that swing, my body is about as fragile as a twig. How many bones would be broken? I had never broken a bone before in my life: there was hardly anything dangerous in the confines of my room. There was hardly anything dangerous on my island home, as there was barely anything there except the house… Would breaking a bone hurt? Would it hurt more than my legs once did on a bad day…? What if–

My thoughts were interrupted by Kikoeru’s low and ringing hum, the vibration of which extended from within the dual glaive and radiated outwards into my shaking hands and further into the tensed muscles of my body. It shook gently in my grasp, bringing me back from my panicked state of mind and calming me enough to think about what I should do _now_ that will help me and not hinder me. I gently smoothed my thumb over Kikoeru’s wooden sleeve as a silent ‘thanks’ before taking stock of the situation I found myself in.

Bo was stronger, more experienced in battle, cool-headed, and part jellyfish. I am currently cornered, with only left or right- Wait. He would be expecting either one of those routes, but the one he wouldn’t be expecting is the one right ahead of me: through Bo. While Bo might be stronger and more experienced, he still had no clue that I was a Sireon and had consumed a Devil Fruit. If I could give Kikoeru a clear line to Bo’s body, I didn’t necessarily have to generate enough momentum to wound him right away: I only needed to get some space in order to attack freely. If I distracted him with Kikoeru’s extended reach, then I could try to make him back off with a little bit of electricity and…

And then all I had to do was stay on top of him, like he had been doing with me. A staff and a dual glaive both needed a lot of room to make consecutive attacks, so making this a close combat battle would probably save me from being on the receiving end of a full-force blow.

There was something else… Something else I could use.

“Wow, bay-by! You snapped out of that pretty quickly, for a little guppy*.” Bo raised Kura’s staff and raised it over his shoulder as his torso twisted to follow it. The wood rested on his shoulder for a second as he flashed me a dark smile, “But you should’ve just kept swimming when you found out about the old trout’s operation here, it’s been fun, bay-by!”

Before I could attempt to put my plan into action and prevent Bo from unleashing his attack, he leaned back and placed his foot on Kikoeru. Leaning his weight into it, my back was pressed into the wall as he dug in his heel, causing Kikoeru to slowly slide its way up my body and towards my neck.

As soon as he was certain that I was pinned in place by his long legs, he swung Kura’s staff. The sweeping motion made it incredibly clear that he was aiming for my head, and as I feebly struggled to keep Kikoeru off of my neck (and preventing him from choking me) I knew that I couldn’t dodge the blow.

My eyes instinctively shut themselves as I saw the staff getting closer to its mark. My mind blanked, and my heart hoped against all odds that the staff would only meet air as it thundered in my chest.

_Ba-bump._

_…_

_Ba-bump._

_…_

_Ba-bump._

I felt the wind of the attack as it approached, and could almost sense the staff as it was mere inches from my face.

**CR-ACK!**

But the staff never made contact with my head as a thunderous sound came from directly behind me as Kura’s staff collided with the perimeter wall. A split-second after the collision, the force Bo exerted onto Kikoeru (and by extension, myself) vanished suddenly.

Slowly opening my eyes, the first thing I realized was that Bo’s leg had disappeared into some sort of densely-packed white fog. The second thing I realized about the whole situation, was that when I moved to get out of the way of Bo’s range after the (presumed) failed attack, the mass of white fog followed me. It wasn’t until I moved to raise Kikoeru in order to attack that I realized that I had turned _into_ this… cloud-like substance. Even Kikoeru, which had been metal and wood moments before, now appeared to be made out of clouds. Despite the change in material, it held its shape well, every curve and edge perfectly translated into the soft-looking white appearance it had now. If Kikoeru was anything to go by, then it would be safe to assume that while I maintained my figure, I now looked like I was carved from clouds…

The only explanation I could come to about this transformation was that it had something to do with my Storm-Storm powers. At no time when I was training under Kura did she even mention something like this happening! Sure, she liked to keep all kinds of secrets… But this sort of thing _never_ even crossed her mind as a thing to tell me? And it wasn’t like she wasn’t aware of this sort of ability. I had never been more certain in my life that Kura knew a lot of things she wasn’t letting me in on. Whether because of her secretive nature, or if she did with some sort of purpose in mind… I wouldn’t be able to make an accurate guess. Who knows, perhaps she just enjoyed withholding valuable information from people.

Right now, those questions weren’t important. What _was_ important was trying to use this new ability to help me defeat the Fishman who was staring at me curiously. If I survived this battle, I could worry about changing back into flesh and bone as well as learning how to activate it without the life-saving luck I just had.

“Well then. That was unexpected, wouldn’t ya agree, guppy?” Bo moved Kura’s staff from the spot it made contact with the wall with a scowl. With a glance I could tell that the wall wasn’t going to be standing for too much longer: a web of deep cracks had been engraved into the stone. Through some of them, I could see a sliver of the ocean as the crack ran throughout the entire wall.

“Hey, Arlong~! It seems like that Luffy-pirate wasn’t the only one with a Devil Fruit-!”

Bo’s darkening look disappeared as he saw me point the cloud-Kikoeru at him. The dual glaive shook in my grasp as I built up the electricity, long arcs of the energy leaping from one tip of the darkening cloud-Kikoeru to the other. Surprised at how easy it was to generate electricity in this form, I unleashed the electricity at him as I stepped forwards to ensure I wouldn’t miss him.

Blinding light shot out from cloud-Kikoeru, and the scent of burned flesh soon accompanied it as the lightning made contact with Bo’s twisting body as he attempted to move out of its way. He started moving too late, and the lightning that came from cloud-Kikoeru was too fast. It struck him with such a force that pushed him off his feet and flung him into the saltwater of the channel behind him.

A second of stunned silence passed, and I could feel the eyes of many on me as I panted as a wave of exhaustion swept over my cloud-body. Unable to stand up any longer, I wobbled and collapsed to the ground. As my knees made contact with the slick stone, I found myself sagging against the true form of Kikoeru once more. My grip tightened as I held my shaking frame up with the dual glaive. My eyebrows drew themselves downwards in confusion as I noticed the staff was sleek with what looked to be a light misting of water. Glancing downwards at my body, I could see the grey-coloured haze slowly dissipating and my normal body slowly regaining its place in the world.

With heaving breaths, I ran my heavy fingers clumsily down my figure. Noting that the closer my fingers got to the parts of cloud-me the mist-like vapour would flee from their approach and return the area to normal-me, I found that my clothing and skin felt slightly damp. But, the feeling cleared in a few moments.

Only Kikoeru seemed to retain miniscule water droplets on its surface after the clouds had left my body.

When I looked up to see how the others were faring, I briefly locked eyes with the snarling Arlong before I noticed Zoro’s collapsed figure. It had directed the attention of almost everyone in Arlong Park, and based off of what I could see, it had only happened recently. The octopus-man he was fighting was frustrated, clinging to one of the pillars that remained standing in front of Arlong Park as he waved his tentacles about.

So, it seemed like Zoro had just collapsed.

Before I could make out anything else about his condition, as Bo had driven me quite a distance from everyone else, a blur of black flashed past my sight.

**Crash!**

And then the figure had disappeared from view as it crashed through the perimeter wall. Looking towards the direction it came from, I noticed that Sanji – who was standing by the other Fishman – was now nowhere to be seen and said Fishman was retracting his fist from the air.

“Don’t tell me…” I looked back to the hole in the perimeter wall in disbelief, “That was Sanji…?”

“Now’s my chance! Octopus-Fritter Frenzy!” The octopus-Fishman rapidly punched the pillar he had just been clinging to, then jumped away from it and landed on the ground below. Zoro was still underneath the unstable awning, slowly moving to get up, “I’ll crush you, Roronoa Zoro!”

But as the octopus laughed, the swordsman stood and in a flash of speed and sheer will power, appeared next to him. Zoro then threw the octopus backwards, to where he had been moments ago, as he stumbled forward.

“I’ll crush **you**.”

The remaining awning collapsed on top of the octopus man, and as he shouted out in pain Zoro swayed. While he tried to keep himself standing, chest heaving and muscles no doubt shaking under the strain, he collapsed onto the ground once more.

Well, at least one of them were taken care of, right?

**“Hachi! We can only deal with one ‘Bo’, so stop lying around.”**

…Wrong.

At the sound of Arlong’s voice, the rubble shifted and the octopus-Fishman emerged seemingly unscathed, except for some oddly-cut hair that the swordsman probably gave him. And, if my eyes hadn’t deceived me, he had somehow gotten a hold of six cutlasses, holding one in each of his six hands.

“Graaaaar!!! How dare you, Roronoa Zoro! You died from shock before I, the second best swordsman on Fishman Island: Hachi of the six-sword style, could attack you?! No mere man could ever beat me, no matter how hard you struggle or even if the world is turned upside down!” Hachi took some different stances as he boasted, puffing his chest out and sliding his swords up and down each other as he changed position.

“Six-sword style, huh?”

Dear lord, how was this man still standing?

“What a joke! Is that for chopping vegetables or something?” Zoro Roronoa was back from the dead again, his arm straining against his thigh as it supported his upper body, “There’s a man I need to meet up with, octopus. And until I see him again, Death himself can’t take my life!”

When it came out of that swordsman’s mouth, I found it hard not to believe it. I wanted to keep watching Zoro fight, and I had to convince myself to pry my eyes away from seeing what that man’s insurmountable willpower could accomplish. But the fact that Arlong and the karate-Fishman were conversing amongst themselves concerned me. Flicking my eyes over their way, I could see them **both** watching me with cold eyes. After a few moments, the stingray-Fishman started walking over to Zoro, who had acquired the two swords Yosaku and Johnny had been guarding the entrance of Arlong Park with. But, he passed Zoro without a second glance.

When he turned down the walkway I was at the end of, I knew exactly where this was going and so did Zoro. He glanced over at me, and I felt him analyze me as our eyes met. However, I had no time to figure out what question he was trying to answer as the Fishman continued getting closer. So, I dug Kikoeru’s bladed tip into the ground and used it to stand myself up as Zoro continued his fight with Hachi.

“It seems that your eyes aren’t the strangest thing about you, human.” He spoke as he approached, and while my feet were now firmly placed on the ground, my muscles shook. It seemed that turning into the cloud-state was something that exhausted my body on a completely different level than anything else I had experienced under Kura’s training.

Or maybe this exhaustion was that of every battle, and learning to push off the inevitable collapse was something that came with time?

“Arlong wants you to join your captain in his little game.”

“Well, he’s not exactly my captain… per se…” Even now, the desire for the Fishman’s threat to be true rang through my heart and encompassed every fibre of my tired being.

“That’s not my concern-”

The Fishman was cut off by a foot colliding with his face, pushing him back towards Arlong Park as the black-suited Sanji now stood in between us. He glanced back in my direction, a smirk morphing his lips and a newly lit cigarette hanging from them.

“Mademoiselle, was this fish bothering you?” He turned back to the Fishman, tapping his shoe on the ground as he held out his cigarette towards the Fishman in what looked to be a challenging gesture, “Allow me to remedy that. Permanently.”

I sighed in relief, sinking my weight into Kikoeru as my eyes remained on Sanji’s back as he squared off with the stingray-Fishman again. But, my relief was soon cut short as the sound of disturbed water had my heart stopping.

“Damn! That stung, urchin.” A hand encircled itself around my ankle, and I looked down to see Bo’s upper body out of the water. He leaned over the tiles as he reached out for my leg, putting his weight on his other arm. While he seemed to be uninjured on the surface, the slight tremor in his arm (which he seemed to be experiencing throughout his entire body through closer inspection) and the faint smell of burnt flesh told me otherwise.

He yanked on my ankle, pulling my leg out from under me as he sunk back into the water by a few inches. My grasp on Kikoeru tightened and it provided the anchorage I needed to prevent myself from sliding to the ground and being pulled into the water as Bo pulled once more.

The tile Kikoeru’s blade had lodged itself into shifted at Bo’s continued pulling, and Kikoeru tilted towards the waterway in response. Soon enough, my thigh hit the ground as my foot tried to regain some stability and traction. While one arm remained tightly grasped around Kikoeru, the terror of being pulled into the water made my other hand move down towards the edge of the walkway to provide myself with more support.

What a mistake that was.

“But, you’re not the only one that can sting.”

Before my eyes, one of the tentacles that covered Bo’s head moved on its own accord. Sleek with water, it glinted in the late sunlight as it wrapped itself around my wrist and remained fastened to my skin even after Bo jerked his head away and detached the small part of tentacle from itself: leaving me with a tentacle-bracelet and him with a shorter strand of tentacle-hair.

 

And if my ensuing scream was anything to go off of, it stung like nothing else.

* * *

***PLEASE NOTE***

* * *

***Guppy** : Bo pretty much means this as ‘rookie’.


	14. Battle at Arlong Park Pt. 3

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 14: Battle at Arlong Park Pt. 3

The skin of my wrist throbbed, scorching its position deep into my muscle. Pain flashed through my being in waves as the seconds drifted by. Each wave added to the stinging of the one before it, and soon enough I was engulfed in the hellish tsunami that bathed my body in an agonizing heat that it made my head spin and my eyes water.

“Mademoiselle!”

“Hey, cook! Luffy’s out of time, so worry about that woman _after_ you’ve finished your own battle!”

“Why, you-!”

At the sound of the two familiar voices, my unfocused eyes sought out their sources. Loverboy was still facing off against the karate Fishman, although the fight had moved from the walkway to the solid ground in front of the tower of Arlong Park. His unhidden eye caught my gaze and he flashed me a gentle smile before he turned his attention back towards the swordsman. Following his glower, I quickly found Zoro, clutching at the bandages wrapped around his chest which had turned red as he sheathed his sword. He was peering into the water that intruded far into Arlong Park, fingers gripping the edge of the stone tightly as he panted.

My eyes trailed the Fishman bodies that were scattered around Arlong Park, looking for the octopus Fishman that the skilled swordsman had been fighting. Eventually, I found him: covered in cuts and seeped in red blood. I couldn’t tell exactly what shape he was in due to the distance between us, but I could tell that he was either dead already or would be soon. But despite my relief at the Fishman’s defeat, my eyebrows knit themselves together in a tentative confusion.

When had Roronoa Zoro defeated the Fishman? The victory would’ve surely caused a commotion in the group of villagers loud enough for me to hear… Even if the villagers were too stunned to react, Bo would’ve said at least _something_ … right?

But as I searched my memory for it, no such indication was found. It felt like I had just woken up from some sort of daydream, and had lost a bit of time between the tentacle being placed on my wrist and now.

With that in mind I glanced down at my left wrist, only to find a vicious reddened line of skin where the tentacle once was. I certainly didn’t remember managing to scrape that thing off of my skin. My eyes searched for anything else I might’ve missed, but it seemed that everything was still in the same place it used to be: Kikoeru was wedged into the ground as I clung to it, what strength I had left was being used to anchor me to solid ground… And Bo’s fingers were still curled around my ankle, attempting to pull me into the murky depths of the sea. My eyes met his as I redoubled my efforts.

“You’re just full of little surprises… aren’t ‘cha, bay-by?” I could see the fatigue plaguing his body as he strained to keep his voice level, his body still shivering from the direct hit, “Able to snap out of it that quickly after getting injected with my jellyfish toxin? That little electric-cloud thing you got going on? Sheesh. This fun little game is becoming too much of a hassle to deal with.”

I opened my mouth to reply to Bo’s muttered words, but before I could even form a sound, my attention was drawn to the blond haired cook as he shouted out, “You can’t complain if I do this, right?!”

_SPLASH!_

As quickly as the dandy long-legs had come into my field of view, he disappeared from it. Diving into the water of Arlong Park, the cook left behind a stunned silence which quickly broke after the sea calmed itself from his entrance.

“That reckless idiot!”

“He wants to fight me, a Fishman, underwater? What an incredible fool!”

Zoro was in no shape to follow after Sanji or stop the stingray Fishman from following him into the depths. Stunned, I stared into the water, searching for some sort of sign or flicker of movement that would alert me to how the cook was faring. But there was nothing. Sunlight bounced off of the shifting waters and prevented me from seeing anything noteworthy in the endless blues of the ocean.

Fishmen would certainly be harder to fight in the water, especially when humans became so much weaker in comparison. There was no way Sanji could deal any sort of lasting damage as long as he remained in the water... I could only hope the cook knew what he was doing.

“Shahahaha!” Bubbles surfaced from the water as Arlong’s voice rang throughout Arlong Park, “Mere humans stand even less of a chance against the superior species of Fishmen in the water!”

Bo’s grip loosened, and my eyes quickly turned to see what he was planning. His eyes, for once, weren’t watching me. They were focused on the water, and he briefly dipped his head underwater to get a better look at the situation.

Fighting one Fishman underwater was impossible, but fighting two Fishmen? Surely that would be nothing short of a massacre. If Bo decides to let go of me and go after Sanji while he was fighting the other Fishman, then he wouldn’t be coming back up. That would mean that Luffy would still be stuck underwater, as I can’t swim anymore and Zoro is far too injured to do be of use underwater. The villagers of Cocoyashi wouldn’t be strong enough to break Luffy’s anchor underwater… And if we couldn’t free Luffy, we were all going to die at the hands of Arlong. So, if I wanted to reach the horizon, then there was no way I could let Bo’s attention drift from me to Sanji.

Pushing a curse from my lips, I braced myself against Kikoeru. My fingers secured themselves around the staff so tightly that I could swear I was denting the material slightly. I took several shaky deep breaths, trying to prepare myself for the pain that was about to flood my system. And, on an exhale, I shimmied my body down the stone tiles towards the water, flipping onto my back as I did so. Planting my left foot firmly on the ground, I allowed my right foot to plunge deep into the water.

Apprehension made my heart heavy, and I could feel the blood pumping through the organ with every shuddering beat. Seawater closed in around my foot, and I wriggled at the uncomfortable feeling that came with water since I consumed the Devil Fruit. Luckily, no water had seeped through my boot yet, but I could feel damp spots appearing in the material.

Bo’s head popped back out of the water, and his grip tightened once more as he tugged on my ankle again. His attempt was more successful this time, my back slid down the slippery stone and my foot plunged deeper into the ocean, the water now lapping at my boot a few inches above my ankle. But that was fine, for now. Water had yet to reach my bare skin, and the weakness that came with being a Devil Fruit user didn’t set in until seawater engulfed the leg up to around the knee.

“What’s the matter, bay-by? Your strength finally giving out? Good. Why don’t you just come on in and swim with the fishes for a while? Your curly-browed friend seems to be enjoying his stay…”

He pulled on my ankle once more, planting his feet against the stone and arcing his back so far back that his head dipped underwater again. I was sliding again, inching towards the edge of the water no matter how much I tried to force my body to clench to the stone tiles. My leg slipped even deeper into the ocean, water now seeping through the boot from the cut that had been made in the material back at the sea-faring restaurant. Grimacing as I felt my skin pull itself taught as water surrounded the limb, I knew I had no time left. So, when Bo finally stopped pulling on my foot and resurfacing his head, I grabbed Kikoeru and lifted the dual glaive from the ground it had anchored itself into.

As soon as it was freed from its stone sheath, I rolled it around in my palm, making sure that the blade was pointed outwards. Sitting up, I towered over Bo as he bobbed in the sway of the ocean. With a speed I didn’t know I had, I reached out and encircled my left arm around his back, pressing as many tentacles as I could to his skin before sliding Kikoeru’s blade behind his neck. My feet braced themselves against stone, steadying my body and providing me with the foundation to rotate my upper body with Kikoeru as I ran the blade along the Fishman’s tentacles, trimming most of the tendrils from his head. As soon as Kikoeru’s wooden staff met my back – the arc of the slice completed – I removed my arm from Bo’s body and kicked: my left springing my body from the ground, and my right kicking Bo in the chest.

As I landed on my back a safe distance from the waterway, I immediately curled onto my side and cradled my burning left arm to my chest. While my sleeve had protected the skin from an inch below my elbow and up, the rest of my inner forearm had nothing to shield the skin from Bo’s tendrils. Faint red lines already searing themselves into my skin in a distorted pattern. It wasn’t until I was rolling around on the ground as I tried to distract myself from the intense pain that caused my heart to stutter and my mind to blank, that I realized that my lungs were releasing air in the form of an ear-piercing scream.

But, it was also then that I realized that I wasn’t the only one screaming.

“ **AGH**! _Dam* it_ , you prickly prawn! What the hell did you do?!” And somehow, the equally pained sound that came out of Bo’s mouth made me feel much better.

I heard Bo leave the waterway, the excess saltwater rushing from his body to pool onto the stone tiles he stood on. Rolling over, I could see that I had cut most of his tentacles off, save for a few that hadn’t been severed all the way through and the two long strands that fell in front of his ears (and therefore didn’t come into contact with Kikoeru’s sharp edge). He inspected them with a murderous look on his face before he angrily tore away the damaged pieces, flicking them to the ground before letting the strands fall on his back once more. The strands then disappeared underneath the water-logged grey beanie he wore. Only an inch or so of the cut tentacles were visible, and there seemed to be no obvious bulging of the hat to indicate how a good length of the tendrils had vanished. He then turned his attention on me.

But by that time, I had already stopped paying attention to the furious Fishman. The pain had slowed in my arm, and I would’ve been able to breathe a little easier if that hadn’t been because of the fact that most of my left arm had gone numb. But, my attention wasn’t on the numbness of my arm. It was on my leg, and the way pain radiated through it as the skin reopened into its well-defined cracks and revealed my illness to the world once more. I could feel heat pulsating from the flesh, and as the skin split from my toes to just below my knee tears pricked my eyes as I felt the ripping inch a little higher into previously unscarred skin.

It was a slow tear, one that made me feel every miniscule tissue as the interwoven fabric was shredded horribly. It almost made me want to laugh: the horrible misfortune I attempted to postpone started up again with a new vigour each time my skin was surrounded with seawater. An involuntary shudder wracked my being as I thought about the situation I would be in if I was in deep enough water to be weakened by it: not being able to get out would be a death sentence, more than it would for regular Devil Fruit users. Kura said as much in her time as my mentor and it proved to be more incentive to stay as far away from the water as possible, even if it did give me a slight panic attack whenever I got too close to the damning blue depths.

The Fishman’s sudden presence above me returned my attention to the ongoing battle. As soon as his shadow fell over my figure, my body rolled over and my fingers searched for Kikoeru, which was lying discarded on the stone. However, Bo reached it first. He kicked it away just as my fingertips brushed the surface of the staff, and it skidded far out of my reach as it joined the forgotten training staff. The pain that burned through my leg kept me from falling into the dream-like state I had experienced before with Bo’s sting, but my reddened arm hung limply at my side as my scattered mind tried to keep up with Bo’s movements.

A drop of water splashed on my cheek as he dug his foot into my stomach harshly and rolled me over onto my back, his cold eyes analyzing me as he knelt to crouch over my frame.

He smelled of salt and blackened flesh, and my mouth curled downwards at the odd mixture. Lifting my uninjured foot up to his chest in order to push against his advancing form, I accidentally twisted his black shirt enough to spot a circle just under the right ribcage of burned blue flesh previously hidden by the fabric. When my attack hit him, he had twisted his body towards Arlong, so the long armholes of the tank top had prevented the shirt from getting burned by the heat of the lightning. The burn looked extremely painful and aftershocks still affected his body; both subtly, in the way that his entire being seemed to shudder, and more noticeably when large muscles convulsed under the Fishman’s blue skin.

“Well, I’ll give ya some credit, urchin. I never expected ya to stir up this much trouble by your lonesome, especially when you’re such a little guppy.” He grinned down at me, overpowering my shaky attempts to push him away as he leaned in closer, “But a little guppy should know when to turn back when completely over their heads. Don’t ‘cha think so?”

His fingers wrapped themselves around my neck, ignoring my own as they feebly scratched at his skin. Bo’s grin darkened, sending a shiver down my spine, as he squeezed my soft flesh. His nails dug into the skin as I attempted to create another spark between my fingers. However, my mind started drifting away as oxygen failed to be delivered to my system before I could feel the telltale tingling of electricity coursing through my veins.

**“Haaagabaagah!”**

Bo’s hands loosened their grip briefly at the loud sputtering gasp, and I silently did the same as my eyes followed the Fishman’s and turned to the sound.

Sanji had resurfaced and quickly made his way out of the water. His blue dress shirt clung to his figure as he spoke with Zoro before turning and pointing into the water with a furious shout, **“Come on out here, you lousy fish! Let’s settle this!”**

It was silent for a moment, and then the karate-Fishman emerged from the water with a threat of his own as he followed Sanji onto dry land, “You still don’t understand, do you? Whether it’s in the water or on the ground, it’s the same. I’m still many times stronger than you-!” The Fishman was cut off from his threats when Sanji kicked him into the ground, the stone breaking underneath him from the impact.

My neck found pressure bearing down on it once more, and I looked to see Bo had returned his gaze to me. During the distraction, I managed to nurture a small spark to life. It arced between my fingers as I spread them, moving my right arm upwards to shock Bo in the chest again… But he intercepted and my skin scraped against the cool tiles as one hand left my neck to hold my arm in place. My muscles pushed against him and my hand tried to maneuver itself to touch Bo’s skin, but he was too strong and just out of reach.

I was unable to shoot this small amount of electricity from my body, as without Kikoeru it couldn’t jump from my skin to his without being close enough to touch. I couldn’t generate electricity where Bo pressed his hands to my skin, as I only knew how to create sparks in my hands… And as black dots started obscuring my vision I knew I didn’t have enough time to try moving the electricity from my hands down to those areas either…

**“FIRE STAR!”**

Flames spread over Bo’s face, and he quickly pulled away from me as he swatted at the fire. He stumbled backwards and I followed him after gasping for air, my electrified hand reaching for the left side of his chest while the other hung limp at my side. The fire engulfing his head diminished and his eyes widened as he saw my fingers come closer. He jolted, heel tipping over the edge of the stone and sending his body reeling into the water. As he fell into the water, I saw a cunning smirk pulling at his lips as his body shook and twitched.

**Splash!**

Confused, I stared at the ripples that spread across the surface and extinguished the crackle of electricity with a clench of my hand. A shadow darted from the depths of the waterway to the open sea.

“Nice work, Kaili! You’ve finished him off!”

I looked towards the hole Sanji had made in the perimeter wall, seeing a bloodied and bruised Usopp peering through it with his slingshot in hand. He had probably been the one to use the ‘fire star’ against Bo, and I decided to thank him for his help after the battle was over. I gave him a small smile and waved in the meantime, and hobbled over to retrieve Kikoeru from the ground. As I grasped the thrumming weapon, my brow furrowed in thought. My fingers never made contact with Bo. Which means that he faked being shocked by me, then fell into the sea water on purpose and escaped Arlong Park.

Did he no longer want to fight? Was he not as loyal to Arlong as the other Fishmen thought? Did he think that he wouldn’t win?

…Was he going to come back?

Somehow, I doubted that he would return after running away from Arlong.

**Ka-Boosh!**

Resting Kikoeru against my shoulder, I turned to see the aftermath of one of Sanji’s powerful kicks: the silhouette of the karate-Fishman carved into the walls of Arlong Park’s tower. As I limped my way over to the swordsman and chef as fast as I could, I nodded at Usopp as I passed by. He gave me a wide grin, seemingly very pleased with himself.

“Oh, Mademoiselle~!” Sanji floated towards my direction as I approached, finally leaving that walkway behind, “I see you’ve also finished off your Fishman! Are you hurt badly? Do you need me to patch you up~? I can do a physical-”

“Uh, no. That’s okay, I’ll live.” Cutting him off on the weird route he was taking, I decided to ask him about the fate of his captain – and consequentially, all of our fates, “How’s Luffy?”

“You said he’s half-okay. What’s that mean?” Zoro joined in on my questioning as he managed to pull himself into a standing position.

“It means he’s not dead… yet. I have to go back down to the ocean floor to make him full-okay, but-”

**“Kuroobi… Hachi… Bo… Choo…”**

Arlong growled out the names of his fallen comrades and stood up from his seat amongst the rubble of Arlong Park, **“How dare you inferior bastards wipe out my most valuable officers? Just who do you think you are?!”**

“But I think that this guy won’t let me.”

Arlong walked over to the waterway directly in front of the building and scooped up some water in his webbed hand before turning to face the three of us.

**“Your lives are worthless, humans. I can destroy weaklings like you with just a handful of water.”** His threats were an animalistic growl, the murderous intent contained in it matched by the intensity of the heated glares he sent us.

Out of instinct, my good leg immediately took a half-step back at the presence of overwhelming danger. I stilled myself a second after, preventing another cowardly step from being taken as I flipped Kikoeru off of my shoulder and rested the dual glaive on my hip – keeping Arlong in line with the blade. Having only one arm and leg functioning properly, there was no time for hesitation or error. We _had_ to save Luffy, or we were all doomed. With that in mind, I began generating electricity with the help of Kikoeru – and I soon felt the crackling energy running through the metal core of the weapon as Arlong raised his hand back.

“Arlong!”

The fight stopped, and everyone turned towards the voice. Nami stood in front of the villagers, staff in hand and a fierce look in her eyes. Luffy’s signature straw hat found itself resting on her head.

“Nami. I was about to crush these no-name pirates, what brings you here?” Arlong let the water he was holding in his hands slowly fall onto the stone below as he grinned darkly.

“I’ve come to kill you.”

“Shahahahaha! To kill me? How many times have you tried that already? Eight years of assassinations, poison, ambushes… The result? I’m still here, ain’t I?!”

The villagers were shocked at the revelation, and I was as well. I knew little of Nami and what she was capable of, but from the brief interactions I’ve had with her I would never suspect she would attempt to kill this monster of a Fishman. And eight years of attempts? She must’ve been just a little girl when she started… I couldn’t even begin to imagine what she must’ve went through….

“You of all people should know that no mere human can kill me! Now listen, I won’t kill you, but I will never let your talent escape me! Nami, you’re going to be my cartographer… **Forever.** ” He paused, his cruel eyes never wavering from Nami, “But, I’m a _very_ reasonable Fishman. I’d prefer that you keep working for me of your own free will.”

He glanced around at everyone present, his gaze lingering on Kikoeru for a long second before returning his gaze to Nami.

“I’m about to kill every human here. Except for you. But, if you’re willing to rejoin my crew and agree to be an officer and draw charts again… I’m willing to spare the people of Cocoyashi village.” Surprised gasps came from the villagers, and Arlong paused for a second to let that sink in before turning his attention back to us, “These three die, of course. So does the long-nose guy. They’ve caused me too much trouble to spare their lives.”

**“Well, Nami? Are you my shipmate… or theirs?”**

All eyes were on her as we waited for her response. She seemed to at least think over her options, which was reassuring if she decided to return to the Straw Hats and their impulsive captain. It was an important decision: who to place your trust in. It mattered, even if the end result didn’t. If we failed Arlong would keep Nami no matter who she sided with. But if we won…

“I’m sorry everyone!” Nami turned to her villagers, “Please fight and die… with me!” The crowd was inspired by Nami’s plea, and roared with a renewed vigor as they thrust their makeshift weapons to the sky.

“So you all want to die, huh?”

Arlong stepped towards Nami and the villagers, but stopped as soon as I moved myself to block his path. Anger caused creases in his forehead, and I urged myself not to step back as his attention was directed solely on me. I kept Kikoeru trained on him, holding the weapon steady with only one hand.

If we won all of these people would be freed from Arlong’s tyranny.

And to win, all we needed to do is free Luffy. And to free Luffy, Sanji needed to dive back into the ocean and break the rock surrounding his foot. So, Zoro and I needed to distract Arlong for as long as possible while Sanji entered the water again. That couldn’t be that hard, right?

All we needed to do is keep his attention on us, and off of Luffy.

**Ploosh!**

**“Bloooooogaaaaaaah!”**

A fountain of water came from beyond the perimeter wall, drawing the attention of everyone. Including Arlong.

“He’s breathing! Now all that’s left is to free his legs!”

“Oh… So that’s what you meant.”

“What are you waiting for, Sanji?! Hurry up and go! Zoro and I will keep him occupied.” At my words, Sanji dove back into the water as Zoro gave me a sharp nod.

“Thirty seconds, woman. I won’t last longer than that.”

“That’s good enough. I’ll see what I can add.”

The difference in skill between us was obvious. I struggled to defeat a Fishman uninjured, while he managed to take one down while fighting a probably life-threatening wound as well. It looked like the octopus had done only minor damage – besides his wound reopening – while my left forearm is numb and my right leg has opened up again and the numbness has set in. The fact that Zoro was waiting for Luffy to fight Arlong could only speak volumes as to how different their strengths were. I wouldn’t be able to contribute a lot to Zoro’s distraction time, but mere seconds could make a difference here.

It didn’t matter if I was only a drop of water in comparison to their seas of strength. I had to try.

“Arlong Park has no fountains… That means that rubber brat is still alive.” Arlong strode up to me, towering over my frame as I struggled to create some space between us as I shuffled backwards, “You humans are foolish enough to believe you can defeat a superior being.”

I started twirling Kikoeru with one hand as I continued moving backwards. While I had been storing electricity in the staff since Nami arrived, it was probably only enough to make the shark Fishman wince a little. Exhaustion certainly had something to do with the slow charge, but there was nothing I could do about it now.

I flinched when Arlong loomed in front of me, and I gathered all the electricity stored into my hand as he stopped Kikoeru’s cycle easily as his large hands ripped the dual glaive from my grasp. He threw it like a harpoon at Usopp, who had just barely dodged the speeding skewer. As he turned his attention back towards me, my fingers touched the smooth skin of his stomach and I released the built-up electricity into his system.

He grunted, his movements stilling for a second. But then a low growl sounded, and while I dodged the hand that lunged for my neck I stumbled backwards and found myself unable to dodge the backhand that followed. His jewelled hand connected with my cheek, and I felt the heated pain of a jewel slicing into my skin as his strength sent me flying. My body curled up into a ball, my chin pressed against my chest and my arm cradled my head as I careened into (and through) the perimeter wall that Kura’s staff had cracked before.

The wall didn’t hold, and I managed to move my left arm up to my head as well before debris started raining down on me. Luckily the larger pieces had missed me, most of the wall had come with me when I broke through it, leading to my back resting on the original stone tiles while my legs found themselves on top of the wall when I stretched myself out.

The afternoon sky spread out above me, and while sounds of Zoro’s distraction could still barely be heard by my ears I didn’t have any strength left to pull my head up. Clouds drifted by pleasantly, unaware of the ongoing battle for the people of the Conomi Islands.

My eyes started to droop, eyelids too heavy to hold open anymore…

But I staved off the long nap my body craved. Until a blur of motion flew overhead.

I grinned broadly and gave myself into sleep with the resounding statement of victory in the air:

**“I’M BACK!”**

And there was no need to worry.

* * *

  ***** **PLEASE NOTE***

* * *

  ***Dam** : ‘cause even in pain, the puns never end for Bo. (‘Damn’)


	15. Arlong Park Has Fallen!

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 15: Arlong Park has Fallen!

**Ka-Bloosh!**

**_“Luffy!”_ **

**Thoom!**

The noise was deafening, and it drew me back into my body. A sharp intake of breath filled my lungs, and then I felt the weight of my tired limbs. My eyes opened slightly, but quickly snapped themselves shut at the overwhelming brightness of the blue sky overhead. The damage was done, though, and I sluggishly raised a heavy hand to shield my eyelids from the bright light that had burned itself into my vision. It didn’t work, but as I felt my fingertips brush against the skin of my face I felt myself groan in exhaustion – the unconscious sound that came from being woken too early – my foggy mind cleared.

“Oh good, you’re up. The fight’s over.” A voice sounded from beside me, and out of instinct my head turned towards her even though my eyes remained closed, “I’ve gone and placed my bet on that pirate friend of yours, so let’s see if he delivered or not, hmm?”

A moment passed as I took in Elder Mara’s words, trying to find the meaning behind them. It wasn’t very hard to do, and as my mind swarmed with memories of the recent battle I shot myself up into a sitting position. The scattered pieces of the collapsed wall dug into my behind, and I wriggled off of the uncomfortable points as my head spun from the fast movement. My eyes tore themselves open and after a few seconds of adjusting to the light, revealed to me that Arlong Park’s tower was in shambles. There simply wasn’t enough to say who had won: the total destruction of the tower could mean a number of things. But even though I knew there were other possibilities, I found that it was hard to convince myself that Luffy might’ve lost.

Pushing those thoughts aside for the moment, I decided to check out the damage dealt to my own body while waiting for the winner of the fight to be declared.  My right leg was numb up to the kneecap, while a burning heat scorched my nerves an inch or so above the numbness. My fingers slid under the heavy blood-soaked black socks to peek beneath the fabric, and true enough, the seeping scars had now advanced up my leg, nearly peering out from beneath the darkened material. Releasing the sock and ensuring that it clung to my skin in a way that would hide the scars, I rubbed my fingertips together to spread the red stain of blood that had been a parting gift from the soon-to-be stiff with dried blood sock.

My left arm, however, felt a lot better than before. While angry red lines criss-crossed the soft flesh, the numbness was slowly leaving the limb and leaving little piercing pinpricks of sensation in its wake. But… The skin was a little wet, and as I brought it up to my nose to get a better indication of what the liquid that doused my skin was, a strong sour smell reached my senses.

“Vinegar. I applied it while you were unconscious, since I didn’t think you’d mind too much when ya woke up.” My eyes met Elder Mara’s as a grin broke out on her face, “It helps take the sting out of jellyfish stings. Works for Bo’s as well. If caught early enough, you should get feeling back in a few hours and in that time a reapplication wouldn’t hurt. She paused for a brief second before looking down at the palms of her own wrinkled hands with a small frown tugging at the corners of her lips.

“You’re quite lucky, youngin’. Most who encounter Bo’s sting are left numb for the rest of their lives.”

I didn’t know what to say to that, so I remained silent. The silence didn’t last very long.

**“NAMI!”** Luffy’s cry rang out as he resurfaced from the rubble, the sun bearing down on him and the blood oozing from his body glistening as a result. But it didn’t seem to faze him as he continued in lieu of the stunned silence of the spectators, **“YOU’RE _OUR_ NAKAMA!”**

A second passed, before celebratory shouts ruptured through the crowd.

“HE WON!”

“ARLONG PARK HAS FALLEN!”

“WOOHOO!”

A wide smile spread itself across my face at the villagers’ joy, and as I heard a choking laugh come from Elder Mara I felt a warm hand press itself against my shoulder.

“Looks like the nightmare is finally over. That Nami seems to have found herself a good group of friends. You have as well, it seems.” She stood up before I could answer her, and held out her hand to me.

“Let’s go join the others, youngin’.”

With Elder Mara’s help, who had a surprisingly strong grasp for someone her age, I pulled myself upright. Tenderly running my hands over my aching ribs, I could feel that nearly half my body would be bruised – if it wasn’t already – from slamming into the brick wall. The aches of the battle at Baratie still hadn’t dissipated either, with the bruise on my stomach and arm from Pearl’s kick still stinging from lightly running my fingers over the skin.

I blinked as Kura’s staff was held out to me, the heavy wood held in Elder Mara’s hands quite easily as she waited for me to grab it. Wrapping my right hand around it, I used it as a walking stick and placed my weight on the training staff instead of my numb foot as we rounded the corner of the former Arlong Park’s perimeter wall. The people had crowded around Luffy, and were throwing him up into the air as they cheered happily. While Luffy seemed to be exhausted, he grinned along widely and his laugh easily joined in with those of the villagers.

As we walked closer, Elder Mara gave me another light pat on the back. She wandered away from my side and flashed me a knowing smile before disappearing into the crowd. Looking ahead, my confusion cleared and I could see exactly why Elder Mara had left me to my own devices. The tan skinned sniper, Usopp, jumped and cheered with the crowd in time with Luffy’s rising and falling through the air.

“Way to go, Luffy! You get my praise, too! Though I’d be praising you even more if you would’ve been the star performer instead of me!” After a moment’s hesitation as I considered joining him, Usopp seemed to take notice of me, “Oi! Over here, Kaili! Come and bask in the greatness that is Captain Usopp!” He waved his hands wildly at me – as if I could _not_ take notice of him – and I chuckled as I limped over with Kura’s staff.

“Captain Usopp?”

“You heard right, Kaili! Do not be alarmed to find out my true identity. You stand before no other than the most feared _and_ inspiring warrior of the sea: the one with eight thousand men under his command… The Great Captain Usopp!”

“Well, Captain Usopp, thanks for having my back earlier. It could’ve ended a lot differently otherwise.” I smiled as I thanked him, going along with his antics.

“Don’t mention it, Kaili!” He laughed as he grinned at me, adjusting his bandana sheepishly before continuing, “We brave warriors of the sea need to stick together, you know – through thick and thin!”

“I have to say, I was quite surprised to see that you used a slingshot as your weapon of choice – although that ‘fire star’ you used was pretty incredible. I’ve never seen anything like it.” I planned on stopping there, but halfway through the sentence I thought I would play along with him, “But I mean, a sniper of your caliber must not be limited to the run-of-the-mill stuff.”

He beamed at my words, a playful twinkle in his eye as he boastfully continued, “Ah, I see you have taken note of a true sniper’s skill. Let me tell you, these skills were forged from years of deadly battle upon the seas.”

“Is that right?”

“Yes, several times, I thought I was at my wit’s end, but then strength returned to me as if by some sort of spell – Giants, Sea Kings, and monsters you’ve never even heard the likes of (for those other than the great Captain Usopp himself would be quaking with fear for the rest of their lives if they heard tell of those monstrosities) have all fallen to the famed pirate sniper you see before you after a death-defying battle!” The animated way he spoke awarded him with a smile that made his grin stretch wider, folding his arms across his chest as he continued.

“But the Great Captain Usopp does not solely lead his eight thousand men into battle, he also leads them on grand quests for treasure that would ensure each of their great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandkids would be set for life-“

“Wow, that’s quite the treasure.”

“I see you are enthused to hear about the adventures of the Usopp Pirates! Well then, let me tell you of the treasure that Woonan, ‘The Great Legendary Pirate of Gold’ had amassed, only to be stolen by yours truly-”

“Man, talk about being on pins and needles…” Usopp’s tale was cut off by Sanji walking up to us, muttering to himself as he watched Luffy getting thrown up and down, “Take care of things quicker from now on, you damn jerk!”

Sanji sent me a warm smile in greeting before trying to light the damp cigarette that hung from his lips. Usopp tried to get Sanji to apologize for cutting him off, but the dandy long-legs was blatantly ignoring him as he focused on lighting his cigarette. After a few attempts, he was successful and let out a breath of smoke and Usopp let out a disappointed sigh and turned to watch Luffy with Sanji and myself. Movement from outside of the crowd stole my attention, though. As we were on the outskirts of the gathering of people, it wasn’t hard to see any late joiners to the celebrations…

But this one was wearing a certain straw hat.

I could feel the gazes of Usopp and Sanji follow mine as we waited to see what Nami was going to do. In doing so, we missed Luffy falling to the ground in a failed catch. What we didn’t miss was Nami walking up behind him and taking off the straw hat, pushing it onto Luffy’s head from where he sat on the ground.

Luffy hopped off onto his feet and high-fived the waiting palm that Nami presented him, meaningful grins breaking out on their faces. Those grins soon spread to the faces of Usopp and Sanji, and a smile broke out on mine. Without a word, the Straw Hats knew that they’d gotten their navigator back. Once again, I felt a longing to join in on their adventures and hopefully one day share in those meaningful grins that said a lot more than words ever could.

“Hold it right there, everyone!” The celebrations were cut short by the arrival of a marine and his men, who chortled in laughter before continuing, “What a lucky day today is! Well done, two-bit pirates, because now all the gold I was supposed to give to Arlong – and the wealth in Arlong Park – is mine!”

“Not to mention, your valiant deeds will go on the record of Captain Nezumi of Navy Unit Sixteen!” He cackled once more, blind to the danger that was converging on him. With the approaching energy of Zoro’s sword, he proved to not be far behind, stopping the mouse-looking man in a mid-laugh and quickly turning it into a nervous screaming when the swordsman’s strong grip found the back of the Captain’s neck. Much to my surprise, he held Kikoeru loosely in his other hand. The metal of the dual glaive didn’t call out sharply to me, so it probably didn’t mind being in the swordsman’s grasp too much.

“Zoro!” Usopp called out to the swordsman in relief, probably because of how the man simply refused to sit still and recover from his wounds.

“ **We’re celebrating our victory… So don’t ruin people’s fun when they’re finally happy.** ”

With that said, Zoro made quick work of the Marines, and soon they were all in a whimpering and bloody pile in front of the collapsed Arlong tower. Most of them were unconscious with Zoro’s rough handling, though. As he finished up and neared us, he passed Kikoeru to me (which he hadn’t used to take care of the marines, using only his bare fist to beat them up) and gave me a sharp nod of his head even as his glaring expression refused to change. Quickly strapping Kikoeru onto my back, feeling the metal humming under my touch, I felt that the swordsman’s neutral expression was an angry-looking one. So, ignoring his glare, I sent a smile his way before turning my attention to the Marines.

“Y-you’d better not mess with me. I’ll make you regret it!” Unfortunately, the Captain was one of the few that could still form words.

“He’s still doesn’t get it.” Sanji scratched his head as he stared down at the man, who was still trying to coerce us into compliance.

Nami stepped forwards from the semi-circle the Straw Hats and myself had formed around the Marines, crouching down to pinch the man’s cheek harshly as she spoke, “This is for destroying Belle-Mère’s tangerine grove, as well as shooting Nojiko.”

_Splash!_

With a powerful twirl of her staff, she hit the Marine Captain in the face and sent him flying into the main waterway that stretched out into the ocean.

“Thanks, Nami! That’s just what I needed.” The blue haired woman I had seen in the crowd walking into Arlong Park gave Nami a grin and a wink as the Marine officers called out after their captain.

“I’d say I need a few thousand more where that came from…!” The mayor-sheriff of Cocoyashi village – Genzo, if I recalled correctly – had a burning glare heating his face as he watched the Navy Captain resurface with a gasp from the seawater.

“Now that I think about it, who’s gonna clean up this place, anyway?”

Usopp’s voice sounded from beside me, and I turned to see that he was staring at the collapsed Arlong tower instead of watching the scene with the Marines unfold. While I could hear Nami threatening the Marine Captain in the background, I decided to answer the sniper.

“Hmm… I don’t know. Maybe the Marines will come to collect Arlong and his crew? They’d have to move some of the rubble to get to them though…”

“Yikes, it would be bad if he woke up before they could take him into custody…”

“It’s a good thing we don’t have to do it, then!” He laughed at that, nodding his head in agreement as I gave him a pat on the back, smiling broadly at him as I continued, “But I’d like to thank you again for your help against Bo, Usopp. You’ll have to show me how you fire that slingshot of yours sometime!”

“Eh, it’s really no problem. It’s what snipers do, right? Watch the backs of others? Besides, with these monsters on the crew-” He gestured towards Zoro, Sanji, and Luffy with a nod of his head, “It’s nice to see someone fighting who doesn’t necessarily have it all figured out.”

He laughed again, pulling out the slingshot he used out of his bag and showed it to me, “But what’s your fascination with this old thing?” He stretched the string back and pointed it at the rubble before letting the band snap forwards before it fell back into place.

“Haha, have you never seen one before?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“What, really?”

“Uhh… kinda?”

“Jeeze, you must’ve been living under a rock! All the kids in my village had one when they were young!”

“Ah, well, I guess so?”

“You guess what?”

“I grew up on an island where it was just me and my family.”

“Oh… well, in that case, I’ll show you all the cool tricks I’ve learned over the years with this trusty thing!” He put the slingshot back into his bag as he shot me a grin, which I returned.

“ **Straw hat man! You’re name’s Luffy, right?! You rotten pirates are gonna have something terrible happen to you, now that you’ve gone and made me mad!** ”

The shouting of the mousey Marine Captain caught our attention, and we turned back towards the waterway just as the officers were swimming away with a hurry.

“Says some major stuff’s gonna happen now.” Sanji gestured towards the receding splashes of water as the five of us watched. With a quick look around, I saw that Nami had walked over to talk to Nojiko and Genzo.

“How does he know I’m gonna be King of the Pirates?” Luffy definitely had a one-track mind.

“That’s not what he means, idiot.” And Zoro didn’t hesitate to call him out on it.

“H-hey, what do we do?! What if we really do wind up with something terrible happening?!” Usopp seemed to be the only one concerned about this whole matter, and was trying to bring it to the attention of the others, “Hey! Hey! Hey, I said! This is important stuff-!”

But poor Usopp was ignored, instead the Captain of the crew focused on poking Zoro, who shielded his wounded body with a growl when he got a little too close to a tender area. Sanji watched them with a raised eyebrow, chuckling at Zoro’s misfortune, which caused said swordsman to start picking a fight with the cook. Eventually, Usopp forgot about the threat of the Marine Captain and joined in with his Captain and started annoying Zoro.

It almost seemed like one big family.

After a while, they all – not including Zoro, but I noticed that his scowl had softened slightly – started laughing with one another, and I couldn’t help but join in. The happy conclusion of the fight had left a light bubbly feeling in my heart that made everything seem like it was going to turn out alright with these guys around. Although, it could’ve just been the adrenaline high wearing off and the giddy sensation that followed now that I realized that my life had been on the line (and who in their right mind would feel as happy as I did at the realization?).

Another voice joined in on our laughter, the orange-haired Nami making an appearance into the group.

“Oh, Nami!” Luffy greeted his navigator, the grin failing to fall from his face for even a second, “Have you met Kaili yet?”

Her eyes turned to mine, and I recalled the less-than-friendly meeting we had earlier. But, her smile seemed to widen as she appraised me for a second time, stepping forwards and offering me her hand. With a smile, I shook it.

“I’m Nami, the navigator.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Nami. I’m…” With a pause, I thought about saying my full name, ‘Kailina’. But seeing how everyone in the crew knew me as ‘Kaili’ thanks to Luffy using the nickname all the time, I decided to introduce myself as such, “…Kaili.”

With a smile, she hooked her arm in mine and lead me away from the others, following the Cocoyashi villagers back down the path as I saw some of them running ahead while holding Arlong Park’s tattered flag high above their heads, chanting “Arlong Park has fallen!” loudly.

“C’mon guys, you’ve gotta get patched up! Don’t lag too far behind – and don’t get lost, Zoro!”

Ignoring the fervent cries of Sanji’s love, and the heated glare of Zoro, Nami tugged me along with her, and after I stumbled a little before getting a grip on the training staff and matching her rhythm, she spoke.

“It’s so nice to have another girl on the crew! Not even that, it’s so good to have a crewmember who doesn’t rush in before thinking!” She turned her eyes on me, and I realized after a second of confusion passed that the gleam in her piercing brown eyes revealed this to be an interrogation. A friendly one, but an interrogation nonetheless.

“Uh, I’m not part of Luffy’s crew?” This seemed to confuse her, and her brow furrowed in confusion.

“Wait, what? But Luffy-?” The confusion cleared, and her smile brightened, “Oh, well I’m sure you’ll get in as soon as you ask!”

“But there’s no way-?”

“Look, you want to join, right? There’s no way you don’t after the way you’ve fought with them to save everyone – thanks for that, by the way.”

“No problem, I’m glad that it ended well for you guys.” I was trying to leave it at that, but Nami’s unwavering gaze told me that it wasn’t going to be that easy, “And, well… Yeah, I would like to join Luffy’s crew. You guys seem like a good bunch – the best group of pirate’s I’ve seen, at any rate. But there’s no way that he’d take me in. I mean, have you _seen_ them fight? I can’t even hope to measure up to that-”

“Alright! I was right, you do seem to think things through. That’s good. But, since you seem to be unsure, I’ll let you know something.” She paused, turning her brown gaze from me and looking ahead, “Luffy already thinks of you as part of the crew. I don’t really know the whole story, but you’ve made an impression. I’m completely sure that he’ll let you join the crew if you ask him.”

I opened my mouth to reject that idea – as it was almost too good to be true – but almost expecting this, she cut me off with a question-like statement, “So, you ate a Devil Fruit?”

With that, the moment I had to refute her previous statement disappeared, and I instead pushed it from my mind as I focused on answering her new question, “Yes, I did.”

“And it’s something to do with the weather?”

“Yes? It’s called the Storm Storm Fruit…”

“Ah, I see. That’s why you feel like a storm.” She said this as this piece of information brought everything together in her mind. I failed to see how it would, and I was curious to how I could ‘feel’ like a storm. Was it something the Devil Fruit did? Kura never mentioned it. Nobody at Baratie did, either…

Was it because she was a navigator?

“Do you make it a habit to sense storms?”

“Hm… It’s just something I’ve always done,” She shrugged delicately, a proud smirk revealing itself briefly before she asked another question, “How long have you had your Devil Fruit? Luffy’s had his for a while, from what I know.”

“Well… I got it three months ago.” I laughed nervously as Nami froze in her tracks, her eyes widened in surprise as she whipped her body around to face me. Her hands gripped my shoulders tightly and I winced at the pressure on my bruised arm. She immediately softened her grip, but did not let go.

“THREE MONTHS?!”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Then how long have you been practicing with that weapon of yours? It couldn’t be that you started at the same time, right?”

“Well…”

“Are you kidding me?!”

I couldn’t tell if she was happy or angry at my answer, or a mixture of the two. So, I smiled sheepishly at her with a tentative answer that could also pose as a question slipping out of my mouth.

“No?”

“Of course not. And here I thought we had another ‘normal’ person joining us.”

“And what does that mean?”

She grinned, continuing on her way with me in tow as she ran her free hand through her hair with a sigh, “It means that you’ll have no trouble keeping up.”

A silence fell over us for a few minutes as we walked, before Nami started up the conversation once again, this time about more mundane things.

“So, do you like tangerines?”

Somehow, as Cocoyashi Village came into view, Nami had already gotten me to agree to help her move some tangerine trees from her mother’s orchard to the Going Merry as well as promising her to ask to join the crew tomorrow. While I wasn’t quite sure who she was yet, I think we were well on our way to being friends.

* * *

The festivities raged on well into the night, music and laughter floating in on a warm breeze through the open window of the bedroom Elder Mara had graciously arranged for me. I heard from her Zoro had been patched up by the doctor, and the rest of the crew all eventually were checked by the doctor as well. With the promise of a feast throughout the day tomorrow, I curled up in the blankets. I had forgone the party for a long sleep, it had evaded me as Nami’s words continued to ring through my mind and quicken my heart:

_“Luffy already thinks of you as part of the crew…”_

_“It means that you’ll have no trouble keeping up.”_

Eventually, I coaxed myself to let sleep overcome my racing thoughts as I promised myself that I’d make good on my promise and ask Luffy tomorrow if he’d allow me into the crew.

If he accepted, then there was no way I’d allow myself to lag behind. Even if I had to get a running start merely to close the large gap that already existed.

“ **I’m Captain Usopp!** **I’ll tell you how I brought down the Fishmen!** ”

With a smile on my lips, I quickly fell into a deep sleep whilst the crowd cheered for Usopp to continue.

* * *

O

* * *

So, a little bit of a chatty chapter... and expect the next one to be the same.

Aaaaaaanyway,

**Next time on the ToT, a One Piece fanfic...**

A Cocoyashi party next chap?!

This just in! Fishmen? Kinda defeated now, so this is a really old newsflash.

Luffy already thinks of Kaili as part of the crew!?

Will Kaili FINALLY ask the Straw Hats if she can join?!

SOME USOPP AND NAMI CONVO AS WELL AS ZORO NOT ACTUALLY DISLIKING KAILI SEEMINGLY?!

You'll have to tune in next chapter to find out... :3

* * *

 

Thanks for reading, Fireflies!

-Love, Ember ;3

 

 


	16. Meeting Merry and Celebrating the End of a Decade's Fight!

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 16: Meeting Merry and Celebrating the End of a Decade’s Fight!

A yawn spilled from my lips as I tried to wake myself up by rubbing at the corners of my eyes. But, the motion failed to stop the second yawn of the morning as I begrudgingly unfurled myself from the cocoon of blankets I had created overnight. Early morning light poured through the open window, and as I cracked open my eyes further I could see brightly coloured curtains swaying in the pleasant breeze.

Resisting the urge to curl up in once more, I willed myself into a sitting position and dangled my legs over the frame of the bed. My tired mind slowly started to clear as I took a moment to look around the room Elder Mara had placed me in. The modest bedroom was crammed with shelves filled with large books, most of the titles slanted across the spines of them were too elaborate for me to understand. The walls – or what I could see of them – had been painted a light blue, although the wall that had numerous small holes where I guessed shelves once were had started to be repainted in a soft green. Tape lined the ceiling where the soon-to-be green wall met the white panels above, protecting them from the paint job that was in progress.

From what I remembered of Elder Mara’s explanation, this was her son’s room before he left to join the Marines as a doctor. So now it was more of a storage room for all the books in the house than a bedroom, but I wasn’t complaining. The house, located in Cocoyashi Village, had been passed down to her daughter when Elder Mara moved to Gosa… Since the destruction of Gosa, Elder Mara had moved back in with her daughter, son-in-law, and great granddaughter. Unfortunately, I failed to catch their names in last night’s blur.

My bare toes brushed against the wooden floor, and a shiver ran through my body at the cold surface against my warmed skin. Steeling myself against the desire to retreat back under the covers, I planted my feet firmly on the floor and stood up from the mattress. Holding back another yawn as I stretched slowly, tenderly trying to avoid overextending the already sore muscles. While I never really considered myself to be a morning person, Kura’s harsh training had my body waking up on its own at ungodly hours, even if my mind still lagged behind.

My eyes turned to my left hand, tracing the muted red lines that still criss-crossed the skin. Forming a tight fist, it seemed like the numbness had faded entirely overnight. The numbness had also faded from my leg, replaced with the feeling of skin pulled taught to stretch thinly over the flesh as the scars had closed themselves again. But, instead of fading into the barely noticeable scarring as it was before, the scars mirrored the vibrant red lines of yesterday’s Bo sting. Fingertips lightly brushed over the surface of my right leg, smoothing over the light indentations of the skin where the jarring pattern had split the skin.

It was strange. Seeing the wound that had plagued me for long years close up so easily, so effortlessly. Kura and I never really discovered why or how it happened, so she ended up brushing it off with a nonchalant _‘the powers of a Devil Fruit are still a mystery to us: those that wield their powers and those that witness them’_ and a perfectly timed shrug. There was one thing we learned, though. Something that caused even Kura, who had an insatiable hunger for information, to call off further experimentation with the effects of seawater:

The fact that the scars on my right leg now stretched up into the bend of my knee while those on my left leg lagged behind to just below that curve.

With a few cautious trials, we were able to learn that limited exposure to seawater resulted in only the nearby scars to reopen. But even with controlled areas being affected, the scarring slowly crept up my legs each time. At least now I know that the more that is submerged, the more the scarring travels.

Ignoring the uneven lines that marred my skin, I slowly made my way over to the table in front of the open window – testing out the range of motion my leg had without becoming painful (discovering whether or not my skin would actually pull itself open was not a test I’d like to do anytime soon, after all). My slow but cautious pace gave me a bit of a limp that was slight enough to be easily explained as a sore ankle.

It would put a damper on my plans to do some light training before finding myself some breakfast, but it’s better to not push my body over its limits. Upper body training and some sort of core workout would probably still be okay.

A laugh spilled from my lips as I pulled on my clothes, which I had washed half-heartedly before I allowed myself into bed. Kura would certainly be proud of me for trying to stick to her insane training schedule (although she always emphasized resting when needed) but I suppose now I had someone to try and keep up with – Kura had always been a lofty goal to start with.

…I guess not much had changed in that regard.

Roronoa Zoro the swordsman, Monkey D. Luffy the rubber man, and Sanji the cook. The three had overbearing strength. Those three of them probably worked hard to get to the level they were at: a lot of time, a lot of hours, and a lot of mistakes… And on top of that, a lot of experience. While I hadn’t seen much of Nami the navigator or Usopp the sniper of legend, they had probably put in the same amount of effort…

I definitely had my work cut out for me, that much was clear.

With that in mind, I decided to get a few good hours of training in before I lost even more time to them. Strapping Kikoeru securely to my back and creeping over the creaky floorboards, I quietly made my way downstairs and slipped out of the house unnoticed.

Even with the sun only peeking out over the horizon, lighting the sky ablaze in warm golden colours before seamlessly fading into a light blue, there were some early risers cleaning up from the huge party the night before. It was a little pointless, especially when the feasting and partying the villagers would continue into tonight, but I sent them polite smiles as I shuffled my way to the outskirts of Cocoyashi.

Arlong Park would probably be the best place to train: that way I wouldn’t embarrass myself in front of Luffy or his crew, should they wander a little farther away from Cocoyashi then I suspected they would. Within minutes I was standing in front of the road leading to the former base of the Fishmen Pirates. Trying not to disturb my right leg too much, I lowered myself into a sitting position: keeping my injured leg in a comfortable position while tucking my other foot underneath it.

Closing my eyes, I focused on my breathing in preparation of the exercise ahead. As my body wasn’t fully used to the sudden increase of intense physical exertion, I frequently found myself out of breath – both from getting tired quickly as well as not having good control over making sure a steady flow of air was reaching my lungs. Straightening my spine, I settled myself in for a few minutes of breathing.

In my meditation the sounds surrounding me became clearer: less muddled by my sight or my thoughts. Bird calls rang from deep within the forest, at least three of which I could easily decipher from the others. They weren’t too different from the birdsongs I heard back home, even from before Kura’s strict schedule was enforced. Back when the pain from my legs sometimes kept me awake up until morning, when the lighthearted chirps lulled me to sleep.

It seemed like such a long time ago. Like my illness was just a fleeting dream that I couldn’t wake up from for the longest time…

“Oh. Kaili.” The gruff voice startled me, and my eyes shot open to reveal the green-haired swordsman standing before me.

“Jeeze, don’t sneak up on me like that!” I half-heartedly sent a glare the swordsman’s way before placing a hand over my quickened heart in a mock effort to soothe it.

He scoffed at the motion in what I believed to be a good-natured tone before finding a spot next to me. Out of the corner of my eye I watched as he smoothly prevented his white sword from catching on the ground behind him by pulling it from his side and resting it against his shoulder. He had changed his bandages for white shirt, and the green haramaki seemed to be forever glued to his person. While he didn’t seem to be in as bad a state as he should’ve been, I did note the slight look of discomfort that flashed across his face whenever he moved his shoulders a little too much.

From what I’ve seen of him, he didn’t seem to be a bad guy. He was strong, perhaps a little blunt, and had a slightly angry ‘neutral’ face… But, not a bad guy. Besides, Luffy wouldn’t pick a bad person to be on his crew – not from what I could tell anyway.

He met my eye, and after a surprised blink as I realized I’d been rudely staring at him for who knows how long, I tried to see if I could get to know the swordsman a little better as I turned my head forwards and focused on my breathing again.

“Heard that the doctor stitched you up.”

“Yeah.”

“You… uh… doing okay?”

“Mm.”

The noncommittal sound was indecipherable to me, so I decided to leave the exchange with some confidence in my conversational skills intact. At least now I knew he wasn’t a very vocal person.

We sat in silence for a while longer. To my surprise, it wasn’t as nerve-wracking as I thought being alone with him would be. The silence wasn’t awkward – on the contrary, it was quite pleasant – and there was some strange sort of satisfaction to be gained from just sitting in the same space as someone else. Sitting in the same space, doing the same thing… But doing it separately.

Maybe that’s the type of thing he liked to do?

…

…And now he’s snoring.

So maybe he just likes sleeping.

…

Lifting my shoulders in a delicate shrug, a small smile that I dedicated to this new friendship (if you could call it that at this point) pulled at the corners of my lips as I stood as quietly as possible. Stepping away from Zoro, I slung Kikoeru off of my back and gently placed it on the curve of my foot. Crossing my left foot over my right, I sandwiched the weapon in between them. With Kikoeru secured, I kicked myself off the ground and landed on the palms of my hands. Pausing a second to adjust my posture and tightening my muscles to ensure I stay perfectly straight, I then placed one hand in front of the other, slowly making my way towards Arlong Park.

* * *

Beads of sweat ran down the side of my face, dampening the strands of hair plastered to my skin even further before falling to the ground. The blue sky stretched out above me, the sun hanging above the horizon as it shone down on me, heating my already flushed skin further. Craning my neck forwards.

I could see the door-less entrance to Arlong Park so tantalizingly close that I could taste my self-imposed victory already.

While my body pleaded to finish up without another step, I pushed down the feeling in favour in pushing past my limit by at least a few more meters. With shaking arms, I managed to do just that. Reaching the threshold of Arlong Park, where the dirt road turned into a smooth expanse of stone tiles, I let out a thankful sigh and let my legs fall forwards. Planting my feet firmly on the ground I slowly flipped my upper body upright again, relishing in the fact that my muscles could now relax.

Untangling Kikoeru from my ankles, I rested the staff against my shoulder with trembling arms as my white-blue eyes took in what remained of Arlong Park. The Fishmen had already been picked up by the marines – who seemed to work fast when all the hard work was done. The mousey marine captain hadn’t made an appearance since, which was a little troubling but it was infinitely better than having him hanging around the festivities. Shaking my head, I brushed those thoughts away.

Wiping sweat off of my brow and into my shirt, I took a deep breath and recollected myself. Limping over to the corner Bo had pushed me into yesterday, I decided to spend the rest of my time before breakfast trying to work out a way around the disadvantages I had in smaller spaces.

Climbing through the large hole in the wall I had created, I found one of the larger pieces of rubble and brushed the smaller chunks of stone off of its surface. A large crack ran through it: the result of Bo’s attack when he had me pinned to the wall and aimed to separate my head from my body with the help of Kura’s staff. It should’ve killed me, as I was unable to move…

But somehow it hadn’t. Because of the Devil Fruit’s ‘Cloud Form’ I had been saved, becoming impervious to physical attacks… If I could learn to control that, then maybe being backed into a corner wouldn’t be so crippling. That way I could turn part of Kikoeru into clouds, and therefore be able to gain enough momentum without having to have room to do so.

Learning to control the Cloud Form was going to take a lot of time, though, since I don’t even know how to make it manifest _now_. In the meantime, learning how to _not_ get myself stuck in a situation like that is probably easier.

With the events of the fight running through my mind, there were two things I could work on now to prevent that from happening again: Being able to generate electricity from anywhere on my body, and generating wind for fighting purposes. If I had even considered the latter, then I could’ve perhaps pushed Bo back – not with my own strength, but with the strength of the wind. If I could harness it the right way… Then maybe I could’ve even jumped over Bo and turned the tables on him instead of having him toy with me like he did.

Nodding my head, I decided to get to work.

* * *

My stomach growled loudly, reminding me of the fact that I still hadn’t gone to get food even when breakfast had probably long passed. But, like the many growls before it, I ignored it and pushed on. I was close. I could _feel_ it. So tantalizingly close that stopping now would only serve to snatch this training session’s second goal from me: landing a flip after the help of my Devil Fruit created wind.

The first goal, discharging electricity from an area other than my hand, had been achieved relatively quickly and with great success. Now I could expel any stored charge from the tips of my fingers straight down my arm and to my elbow. It didn’t seem like a huge improvement, and it wasn’t particularly, but it was a huge step taken towards the next goal: controlling when I discharged it. So far, it had pretty much been an ‘all-or-nothing’ release as soon as the charged area touched something or someone... But if I was starting to control _where_ I discharged electricity then _when_ couldn’t be too far behind.

The second one, which had awarded me with several scrapes and new bruises that felt like they would be sticking around for a while, was coming along a lot slower. Kura had me focus on offensively training my electric abilities rather than my wind ones. It was a good call, as the former had helped me out a lot with my recent battles – and one ‘complete’ skill was definitely better than having two ‘incomplete’ ones…

But now I was trying to hold myself up with wind power. It had started with small rocks and steadily increased from there, as the rubble provided me with all sorts of different training sizes… ‘Levitating’ myself an inch or so also hadn’t been too big of a deal… But whenever I tried to move in the air, my balance was lost and I winded up crashing back onto the ground. It had taken a few hours of countless falls, but I was _finally_ close enough to see the finish line. I could now make a full rotation, but knowing when to cut off the wind and how quickly gravity brought me back down continued to be a learning experience. The one time I managed to land on my feet, I had been caught so off-guard that my attempt to straighten myself up had come too late.

“Alright, Kaili. You got it this time… Just breathe, and focus.”

Bending my knees slightly, I generated wind beneath me. Slowly increasing the power of the wind, my feet soon left the ground and a weightless sensation gave my empty (and still growling) stomach butterflies as my hair whipped across my face. Holding Kikoeru out in front of me, I took a deep breath and kicked my feet out behind me and fell forwards, using Kikoeru as a ‘bar’ that I spun around.

When Kura had shown me some of her moves – after relentless persisting – she swung Kikoeru around in such fast arcs that if I blinked, I missed them. But she never let Kikoeru idle. The dual glaive was always turning, always cutting through the air and biting into imaginary foes. The only time Kikoeru slowed for a brief second was when Kura flipped backwards to avoid an invisible attack, curling herself over the staff briefly before her legs had cleared the hurdle and Kikoeru was speeding around once more.

Instead of flipping backwards, I was flipping forwards… And instead of starting on the ground, I had a little bit of a handicap… But I was essentially trying to imitate Kura’s handiwork. She had trained me on the basic skills she used when she wielded Kikoeru – flexibility and balance being high on that list – so it wasn’t too farfetched for me to look to Kura’s maneuvers in order to improve.

Imagining her fluid movements in my mind, I tried to replicate them as best I could. The soles of my feet brushed against the stone floor, and excitement ran through my body as I stopped the wind. After a moment of believing victory to be in my grasp, I teetered backwards. Frantically, I tried to shift my feet under my body (as I had stretched out in mid-air, and then was off-balance already for the landing) and created wind to try and push my falling upper body upright…To no avail.

My back landed harshly on the ground, and pushed a breathless laugh from my lips.

_So_ close, but I just couldn’t seem to stick the landing.

I gazed up at the blue expanse of sky, pausing and letting the gentle breeze run over my flushed skin, cooling me down slightly as the sun’s heat still glared down on my form. It had moved up in the sky, almost directly overhead. Shifting my arm over my eyes to shield me from its brightness I took a quiet moment for myself and let my fast pants come to a stop.

My stomach growled loudly, and I merely groaned at the sound.

“…And then the adventurer came to see what the sound was that terrified the villagers into sending the brave wandering hero into the wreckage of the defeated tyrant…” Confusion crossed my face, and I lifted my arm to peer towards the voice. Usopp sat perched on top of the perimeter wall and giving me a light wave in greeting as I pulled myself up, “Yo, Kaili.”

“Usopp! What are you doing here?” He jumped down off the wall, landing with a flourish that had me grinning as he approached.

“Well, Zoro said he saw you in the morning looking off towards this place, and nobody’s seen you since… Elder Mara’s been watching over the road like a hawk, and Nami’s been waiting for you to come back soon to help her with her tangerines or something…” He placed a large paper bag in front of me as well as a glass bottle before sitting down in front of me and continuing, “So before she could hound me to do it, I decided to save some water and food before Luffy ate it all and see if you wanted to take it off my hands.”

He laughed at the growl my stomach made at the mention of food, “And from the sound of things, I think you aren’t complaining.”

“You’re my favourite.”

“I know. I’m everyone’s favourite. It’s a skill not many have…” He shook his head solemnly, and then broke out into laughter that had me laughing with him.

Gladly taking the bag, I opened it to find a plate filled with delicious looking food and a fork. As I heartily dug in, swallowing generous mouthfuls of food before gulping down some water, Usopp spoke.

“So, you’ve been out here training all morning?”

“Mm-Hm!”

“I see! That’s impressive. I feel like if I move too much today my whole body’s gonna break down or something.” He poked a spot on his arm and flinched as a demonstration before continuing, “Those Fishmen sure were tough!”

I nodded, and after swallowing responded, “Yeah, I didn’t think anything as strong as them could be found in the East Blue!”

“I know, right? It’s pretty crazy.” He looked around Arlong Park, taking in the destruction thoughtfully, “But, the villagers all seem pretty happy about the whole thing. You missed most of it last night, but they’re calling this ‘Celebrating the End of a Decade’s Fight’. Ha! It might even become an annual thing or something!”

“Mm…” I finished the last forkful of food, washing it down with the last of the water, “I mean, I’m sure everyone on the island has lost a lot over the years.”

“Yeah…” A somber mood had washed over us with that, and seeming to notice it, Usopp didn’t leave it there, “But they can put all of that behind them now!” Nodding with him, I put the empty plate and bottle back in the paper bag along with the fork.

“Alright!” Usopp slapped his knees and jumped up, reaching down a hand to help me up which I gratefully accepted, “Ready to head back now?”

While I wanted to continue training, now that my hunger had been taken care of, my body became heavy with exhaustion and the thought of stopping was too tempting to turn down any longer. I’d admit defeat – for now.

“Yep! Lead the way, Captain Usopp!” He smiled broadly at that, and puffed out his chest as he reached down to grab the bag.

“Mwahahah! You are correct. It is I, the one, the only, the Great Captain Usopp!” He looked at me expectantly, and so with a playful grin I started clapping in mock amazement at his proclamation as we walked.

“What?! _THE_ Captain Usopp? I never thought the day would ever come where I would be standing in his magnificence!”

“I know, I know… It’s a lot to take in. After all, I _am_ the man who conquered…”

The banter continued like that until we arrived in Cocoyashi Village. Somewhere between all of the stories of Captain Usopp’s Grand Adventures, I learned that Usopp’s Pirates had been an actual thing before he joined Luffy’s crew when our conversation took a more serious tone. The eight thousand men had really only been three kids, but apparently they had taken down a pirate posing as his sickly friend’s butler with the help of Luffy, Zoro, and Nami. The Going Merry, or the Merry Go as she was sometimes called, had been gifted to Luffy by Usopp’s friend – Kaya.

It didn’t take a lot of contemplation to know that I enjoyed spending time with Usopp. I hoped to get to know him well in the future.

“And the man thought he could best the Great Captain Usopp in a battle of snipers–”

“Hey, Kaili!”

Looking up from Usopp’s animated storytelling, Nami stood with her hands on her hips as a huge grin spread itself across her face. Usopp and I walked up to her, and as Usopp began opening his mouth, Nami easily cut him off.

“Sorry, Usopp! I’m going to have to steal Kaili from you for a little while! You’ll see her again a bit later!” Without waiting for his reply, she grabbed my arm and started pulling me away. Glancing backwards at him after taking a few steps, I could see him reaching a hand out towards me as he clutched his chest, a playful twinkle lighting up his eyes.

“Stay strong, Usopp. You’re still my favourite!” A snorting laugh was forced out of him when I mouthed the words to him, and I snickered as he sent back a response before heading off and leaving me in Nami’s hand. My eyes met Nami’s as I turned my body to face forwards. She smiled at me mischievously, staying silent for a few moments before speaking.

“You two seem to be becoming fast friends.”

“Yeah, he’s a pretty entertaining guy.”

“Ha! Yeah, Usopp’s great.” Her voice warmed, telling me that despite her initial laugh at my words, she liked him as well.

“I heard that you’ve also been talking to Zoro.”

She was fishing for something. It almost made me laugh with how quickly I realized that, with how little we’ve spoken to one another.

“Uh… yeah, if you can call that ‘talking’. He doesn’t really seem like the type to talk a lot, and he always-”

“-Looks kind of pissed off about something?” She saw the surprise flicker across my face and laughed, carrying the same warm tone when speaking about Usopp, “Yeah, that doesn’t really change when you get to know him better. You kinda just have to get used to it and look for other clues as to how he’s feeling.”

“…That sounds tricky…”

“Eh, it’s not so bad. It kind of happens without you really noticing.”

There was a stretch of silence as we walked, and I noticed that the houses of Cocoyashi had faded into trees. Glancing over towards the orange-haired woman, I decided to ask her where exactly we were going.

“Where? You said you’d help me move some tangerine trees to Merry, so we’re heading up to Nojiko’s house to get some.” My confusion only deepened as I started regretting training so long at the idea of hauling trees around.

“Nojiko? The blue haired woman…?”

“Ah, yeah. That’s her. She’s my sister, so it’s technically my house as well. But I haven’t really stayed there long enough to have it feel like mine.” She smiled sadly, “It’s just a place that triggers a lot of happy memories.” A moment passed by, and I could see that those memories all flooded her head now as the flat road curved upwards into a hill.

Eventually, she shook herself out of memory lane and looked at me with an accusatory gaze.

“You haven’t talked to Luffy yet, have you?” Judging from her voice, she already knew the answer, but wanted me to admit it.

“Uh… No?”

“Kaili! You need to ask already! He’s not going to bite!” Nami released her grip on me to walk backwards in front of me as a lone house came into view as the hill evened out, “It’s going to be so exciting to have another girl on board!”

She sent me a withering look, “Just as soon as you ask him, that is.”

I gave her a nervous grin, which she rolled her eyes at. Spinning herself around, she marched me up to the tangerine orchard in front of the house. Half of the trees had already been dug up, and upturned soil spotted throughout the orchard had me curious as to who dug everything up, but I didn’t ask. She walked up and down the lines, scrutinizing each tree with such a fervor that I almost felt embarrassed for them.

“Let’s see… I’ll take this one,” She pointed to a tree with ripe tangerines hanging from its branches that was lying beneath another one, “…These one,” the tree in question had almost-ripe tangerines spotted throughout the foliage, “And this one.” Her hand wrapped around the trunk of a still-rooted tangerine tree, smiling up at the numerous juicy looking fruit hanging from it.

She looked at me expectantly, and I stared back blankly.

“It looks like she has no idea what she’s doing, Nami.”

Two sets of eyes darted towards the newcomer, the blue haired sister of the navigator approached with her arms folded across her waist. With an arched brow, she looked between the two of us skeptically before throwing a pair of gloves at us both.

“Here, I’ll start digging up that tree,” Nojiko nodded towards the last tree on Nami’s list, “You guys can start carrying down the other ones.”

Nami nodded happily at her, and pointed towards the tree that wasn’t underneath another one. With a nod of my own – having caught on for a while that Nami didn’t intend to carry any tree herself – I slipped on the gloves Nojiko had given me and lifted up the tree as firmly as I could without disturbing the tangerines that grew on it.

Luckily, it wasn’t as heavy as I thought it would be. While the muscles of my arms still screamed at me for lifting the tree, it was more because I had already given them a workout earlier and they were still pretty sore from yesterday. Without any further delay, Nami led me down the hill, through Cocoyashi, and to the dock where Merry was anchored. All the while making small talk I added input to ever couple of minutes – she seemed to be able to do most of the conversation herself while I was preoccupied.

The main reason she was bringing some of the tangerines on board with her is to make sure they avoid getting scurvy on their voyage. Apparently Yosaku and Johnny – who I hadn’t seen after the battle – had to be cured of it when they met the crew.

“Alright, Kaili. Say hello to the Merry Go! We’ll be planting the tangerine trees above the Lounge, so that’s just to your right and keep heading up the stairs.” Nami was already climbing up the ladder and hopping onto Merry as she spoke, her voice drifting further away as she failed to notice she had left me behind.

Water lapped against Merry’s hull, and I sent a tentative glance over the edge of the dock into the water before looking up and taking in the pirate ship. I didn’t really know a lot about ships, but it looked like it held its four crewmembers quite well. The painted eye of the sheep figurehead seemed to watch me with kind eyes as I looked it over.

“Well… Nice to meet you, Merry. Please stay nice and still while I come on board…” Nodding to myself, I put a tentative foot on the first rung of the ladder and slowly started making my way up onto the deck of the ship as I adjusted the tangerine tree in my grasp.

“Kaili?”

“I’m coming!”

With Nami noticing I wasn’t behind her anymore, I made an effort to speed up as carefully as I could before both feet were planted on the smooth planks of the deck. Looking over the tangerine tree, I carefully found the steps to the right of me and continued going up them, coming to a ‘second level’ where the Lounge seemed to be located. Noticing Nami on top of the room though, I hurried up the next steps and joined her.

She clapped as I carefully placed the tree on the ground, holding it steady until Nami took it from me and repositioned it to where she wanted.

“I knew you were the right one for the job, Kaili. The boys would’ve probably hurt the poor things more than they’d help.” She smiled brightly at me as she crouched down, intending to cover the roots with the soil already spread out in the small box nailed into place, “You go get the next one, I’ll stay here and make sure it’s taken care of.”

“Aye Aye, Nami.” I gave her a mock salute and started heading down the steps and starting my journey back up to the orchard. Before I could leave the Going Merry, she called out to me again.

“Oh, and after this is done I’ll give you a little tour of the ship!”

I couldn’t stop the happy grin that spread across my face at the thought. Lifting my hand to let her know I heard her, I continued on my way, determined to quickly – but carefully – bring the next two trees down.

* * *

“Whew! That’s the last one. Good job!”

“Good job, Nami!”

Afternoon had crept up on us as the last tangerine tree got settled on the Going Merry. While the sky had darkened slightly, it was still relatively bright out. It would continue to be so until the night crept in and suddenly darken the sky before we realized what happened. The villagers had started setting up for the feast that would once again last from supper and continue throughout the night, and people rushed around helping out as they waited for it to get dark enough to start partying.

“Alright, Kaili. Let’s start that tour I promised!” Nami grabbed the bag she had placed our gloves and other tools in and threw the strap over her shoulder as she led the way down the steps. She turned right after the first set of stairs, aiming to start the tour in the Lounge. Scurrying after her, I closed the door quietly behind me and took in the room we had been walking on top of for the past hour or so.

In the middle of the room was a stick that protruded from the floor. It had a sheep head carved out of wood topping it, in the same style as the figurehead at the front of the ship. To my left was a kitchen, the walls connected to the stove and countertops were brick while everything else was wood. A table with a white cloth covering it was behind the kitchen, midway between the wall behind me and the wall across from me as it brushed against the left wall. A refrigerator was shoved into the corner, and the far wall was home to a large rack for bottles of wine and beer while the rest of the side was home to sacks and barrels that looked like provisions for the next trip. The right side of the room was relatively bare, but a small box labeled ‘Usopp’s Workshop’ was pressed up against it, out of the way from anyone walking around the staff-thing. A calendar was also nailed to that wall.

“So, this is the Bridge/Meeting Room/Galley of the Merry Go. We normally just call it the ‘Lounge’ though, since we all just kind of hang out here. Oh, I guess I should explain all the technical talk, huh? How much do you know about ships?”

“Uh… Not very much, I’m afraid…”

“Alright. So the bridge is the room where the ship is commanded from. The whipstaff you see there,” She pointed towards the sheep-pole, “is how the Going Merry is steered. Tilting it left or right will turn the rudder and steer the ship left or right. You get it?”

“I think so.”

“Great. The galley of a ship is its kitchen. As you can see,” She gestured towards the kitchen, “this is where the kitchen is.”

I nodded, and she then led me out of the Lounge and down the steps onto the deck of the Merry. She paused for a second, debating where our next destination was, before she crossed the deck and opened the door to another room. She ushered me in before closing the door behind her and allowing me to take in the room before speaking.

This room seemed like a storage room of sorts. It had a huge horizontal wheel in the middle of the room that had rope wound around its base that led out through the wall to the side of the ship. Based on that alone, it was probably how they pulled the anchor up. Cleaning equipment was stored to my left, and cannonballs scattered across the floor. Crates and barrels lined the room, and other miscellaneous things like life preservers, bundles of rope, oars, and weapons that looked like they hadn’t been touched also found their place in the room. Across from the door was a large cannon pointing out the front of the ship.

“So, this is the Cannon Deck and Anchor Room. It’s underneath the front deck – the deck is where we came from, and the back deck is up the second set of stairs, by the tangerines – and is mainly used as a storage room. The Capstan,” Nami pointed towards the horizontal wheel, “is used to raise the anchor.”

She laughed, “Well, it’s really just to pull the rope in. Zoro usually lifts the anchor on his own.”

“Of course he does.” I wasn’t really surprised with anything Zoro did after the way I’ve seen him fight.

“There’s not much in here, so let’s head back to the deck.”

With that said, she guided me outside again and towards the mast of the ship. She gave the hatch located at the base of the mast a quick knock before flinging it open. After calling down and having no one call back up, she started descending down the stairs nailed into the lower part of the mast.

“I didn’t think anyone was down here, but it’s always good to check first.”

She reached the floor before I descended down after her. In a matter of moments I stood beside her and took in the room.

It was a large messy room which seemed to be a bedroom, if the hammocks in the corner were any indication. Two sofas were pressed up against opposite walls, a coffee table in front of one while a soft rug expanded from under the other. Casks and a wardrobe found a corner of the room home, while laundry baskets and washing equipment occupied another one. The last corner was mostly free from anything, although a clutter of trinkets threatened to invade the area.

“This is the Men’s Quarters. It’s really messy, and it seems to have gotten messier since the last time I came down here…” She looked over the room in annoyance and rolled her eyes before she continued, “But there’s an emergency exit over there,” She pointed towards the hatch in the wall that loomed above the couch with the carpet beneath it, “that connects to the Women’s Quarters.”

With that, she started climbing back up the mast, and I quickly followed her. As my feet touched the deck once more, Nami closed the hatch after me. Nami then led me to the door across from the Anchor Room, beneath the Lounge. Stepping into the foreign room, I closed the door behind me before looking around.

It looked to be another storage room, barrels and crates lined the walls. An open crate contained cannonballs for the two cannons that pointed out of the ship across from each other. Another door across from the entrance had towels hanging beside it, so I guessed it was a bathroom. A hatch was open in the corner of the room, leading down further into the ship. A washbasin that was filled with a variety of items was placed by the bathroom door. A wooden pole hung just below the ceiling, attached to another shaft that came from the Lounge – presumably it was attached to the sheep-pole whipstaff thing.

“So, this is another Storage Room and Cannon Deck. We keep all of our cargo here, while the other storage room acts as storage for armaments. Water barrels, beer barrels, food, and some treasure is kept here. The Tiller,” Nami pointed towards the pole, “is attached to the whipstaff in the Lounge above here. The Tiller runs out to the rudder, which sticks out behind the ship and steers it. The door to the bathroom is over there and the staircase down to the Women’s Quarters is right beside it.”

“The bathroom is pretty self-explanatory, so I don’t think there’s a need to look in there.”

We took the stairs down into the Women’s Quarters. It was a lot tidier than the Men’s Quarters, and seemed to have a lot more ‘comfort’ items as well. A large wardrobe, bookcase, and desk lined the wall the hatch was up against. As I peered around the staircase, there was also a small storage box hidden under the stairs and within arm’s reach of the desk. A bar was placed in the corner, being only a few steps away after leaving the last step of the stairs. It looked like it was relatively new compared to everything else, but that might also be because everything in the room was in impeccable shape. A bed was pushed up against the wall opposite to the stairs, and against the wall with the emergency exit into the Men’s Quarters was a plush sofa, glass coffee table and a rug that covered nearly half the room.

“So, this is pretty much my room until a certain someone talks to the captain.” I ignored the not-so-subtle hint.

“There’s nothing really too much to say about the room. If you pull on the ropes over there,” She gestured towards to two ropes that dangled just out from the desk, “hammocks will come down. Keeping them up and out of the way makes everything a lot neater, though. The bar was finished off earlier today by Mr. Teru, the local carpenter who wanted to show his appreciation… For free.”

Nami lead me back towards the deck, taking a turn towards the door hidden underneath the steps leading up to the Lounge. Opening the door, she stood back and let me see what looked like a bicycle of some sort.

“This is what draws the water we use for the shower and bath. Peddling draws water up from under the ship, and electricity is generated to filter the saltwater three times before heating it. So if someone wants to take a shower, they have to peddle on this thing for a bit beforehand.” She closed the door before turning to me, “There’s another one beneath the stairs leading up to the front deck, but Luffy broke that one…” She laughed lightly, but her expression was a little angry.

“Oh, hey guys! Whatcha doin’ here? The party’s about to start!” Luffy had paused mid-run to speak to us, and from the way he was facing it looked like he was just about to head back to Cocoyashi.

“Luffy! Perfect timing, Kaili had something she wanted to ask you.”

With a harsh shove to my back, I was forced out in front of Luffy. Hearing this, he had ‘un-paused’ his running pose to turn and look at me, head turning to the side in curiosity as he waited to hear what I had to say. Shooting Nami a glare over my shoulder, I straightened up and prepared myself for what I was about to say.

This was it.

Whether I would join this group of amazing people or not would be decided in a few short moments. The adventure of a lifetime was staring me down, everything I had ever wanted. Sure, I never really pictured the Jolly Roger marking the Merry as a pirate ship… But things had a funny way of working out. Besides, between these pirates and the mousey marines, it was clear that the world wasn’t as black and white as my father had me believe.

That’s when I realized it. The underlying truth of the matter was that I would never be able to truly be happy sailing towards the horizon unless it was with these guys. Knowing they were out there, having adventures and hardships without me experiencing them along with these pirates… It was a possibility I absolutely had to avoid at all costs. But how was I going to convince Luffy into letting me join in on their adventures? To overlook my blatant lack of experience?

…I want to sail with them. More than anything.

Would that be enough?

“Hey Luffy, I don’t think-” Sanji’s voice soon silenced itself, stopping midsentence.

Luffy’s eyes glanced up above my head for a brief second before meeting mine again, still patiently waiting to hear me out with a uncharacteristically serious look.

“Luffy…” I took a deep breath, forgoing the long winded ramblings my mind wanted to make, or the begging I felt like I needed to resort to in favour of a blunt and direct attack. Nami seemed sure that he had already made up his mind about whether he was going to let me into the crew or not, so anything I said or did wouldn’t change that. All I could hope for was that my previous actions had been enough to warrant me a spot on the Going Merry.

“Please let me join your crew!”

Seconds passed, then minutes. Then I lost track of time as the silence stretched on, as Luffy blankly stared at me, thinking my words over. The quick heartbeat that thundered through my being as I waited for his answer. It came quickly.

“Sure.”

I blinked at him, uncertain if I had heard him correctly. He didn’t wait around for me to ask him again, hopping off of Merry and onto the dock before speeding away to Cocoyashi.

“Come on, let’s start the party! We’ve gotta celebrate!” The villagers around him cheered with him, laughing at his enthusiasm, “Where’s the meat?!”

I still hadn’t entirely processed what he said, but both Nami and Sanji reacted enough to convince me it hadn’t just been my imagination – that I was actually a pirate on Luffy’s crew now.

“Way to go, Kaili! I was expecting you to back out of it the last second, but you really just went ahead and asked him!” Nami gave me another hard pat on the back, one that made me wake up from my stunned state.

“Now I not only have one beauty sailing with me, but two!” Sanji appeared in my view, having jumped down from the deck in front of the Lounge and dropping to his knee in front of me with a flourish, “Are there even words to describe how happy I am to be able to cook for two lovely young ladies everyday–”

Nami grabbed my hands before Sanji could, pulling me away from the cook as she led me towards the side of the Going Merry and making her way down the ladder with me following closely. As soon as I found solid ground again, she pulled me in for a tight hug briefly before flashing me a grin and pulling me along yet again.

“C’mon, Kaili! Let’s celebrate together!”

Glancing back towards the Merry Go, I swear I could see the ship’s figurehead grinning merrily at me.

* * *

O **Comments** O

* * *

**Mr_Moist:** Thanks for your comment, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! ;3

* * *

So, Kaili's finally a Straw Hat pirate. That's a thing now.

Aaaaaaanyway,

**Next time on the ToT, a One Piece fanfic...**

Sailing with the Straw Hats?

A little detour before Loguetown?

Some more training for Kaili?!

Meeting some new characters maybe!?

ZORO AND KAILI GETTING A LITTLE CLOSER?!

You'll have to tune in next chapter to find out... :3


	17. Nami's Farewell

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 17: Nami’s Farewell

“That’s the last of it, Kaili!”

“Sounds good, Usopp!”

Stepping into the storage room of the Merry, I gently placed the crate Usopp passed to me on the ground. With a long breath, I stretched my arms as I viewed the crates, barrels, and sacks that lined the walls. The villagers had been generous with supplying us with everything we needed to continue the adventure Luffy had started.

“Haaaah!” Usopp sighed as entered the room and set down the barrel he was carrying beside the others. He then turned to me with a wide grin, “It’s nice to have another person helping out with bringing all this stuff where it needs to go. Nami never helps out with this sort of thing.”

“She doesn’t? Why not?”

“Ah well,” Usopp scratched his cheek as he considered his next words before his face morphed into an exaggerated angry expression and he pitched his voice higher, “’Ah, can’t you do anything right? That goes over here, _idiot_!’, ‘Usopp~ can you move this for me~?’, ‘Why would you put the barrels on their sides, Luffy?! Of course, they’re going to roll away on you!’, ‘Don’t even _think_ about touching my treasure!’”

 I stared blankly at him as he returned to normal. While it was clear he was emulating Nami, I was unsure as to exactly how it resembled Nami. All through the previous night, she had been very welcoming and introduced me formally to her sister, Nojiko. All in all, she seemed like a very kind person.

“That’s all she ever says when we’re loading up. It’s like a broken record!” Usopp laughed heartily, oblivious to my continued confusion, “The only thing she moves around herself is treasure!”.

“She doesn’t seem that bad–” Usopp placed a hand on my shoulder and sighed deeply.

“Give it time, Kaili. Give it time…” The sniper shook his head solemnly as his free hand wiped away an imaginary tear. “Now that I think about it… where _is_ Nami?”

Usopp removed his hand from my shoulder, ending his dramatics suddenly as he questioned Nami’s whereabouts. Now that he mentioned it, I hadn’t seen Nami at all this morning when I was training once again at Arlong Park before Usopp came to tell me that they were packing up. If Nami knew that Merry was continuing her journey today (and since she was the navigator there was no possibility that she wasn’t aware of that fact), it was a little weird that she hadn’t showed up yet.

“Maybe the others have seen her?”

“Good idea, Kaili!”

With that, Usopp strolled out onto the deck of the Merry as I followed him, making sure the door was closed behind us before joining the pirates that had gathered on the deck.

“Take care, you guys!” Zoro called out over the edge of the ship, arms folded over his chest as he leaned against the railing.

Luffy was sitting on top of the railing, looking out into the crowd of villagers who had appeared to see their pirate saviours off. Sanji met my eyes as Usopp and I approached the trio.

“Kaili~! You look more radiant every time I see you~” The dandy long-legs pranced over and loosely grabbed onto my hands as he knelt before me, “You must’ve worked up an appetite, Mademoiselle, so I’ll be sure to make you an excellent breakfast for all your hard work~!”

“Well,” I pulled my hand out of his grasp and laughed lightly at his antics, “I’m looking forward to breakfast now! I’ve been hearing a lot about your cooking, after all!”

Sanji stood up abruptly, his face set in determination as he lit another cigarette. A cloud of smoke rose into the air as he exhaled upward before looking me in the eye again, “With such a beautiful lady encouraging me, I would be honoured to make the best damn breakfast you’ve ever had.”

“Hey guys, have you seen Nami?” Usopp’s mention of Nami drew Sanji’s attention, and as he was occupied I placed myself next to Luffy and looked over the railing. Usopp continued now that he had the attention of the crew, “As far as I know, she’s not here yet… And we can’t exactly leave without her.”

Yosaku and Johnny stood out in front of the crowd of villagers. While they certainly believed they looked cool in their poses (one arm folded over the waist and the other placed on the chin), the seemed woefully out of place with the normal villagers who had given the two a wide berth.

“Maybe she’s not coming.”

“NAMI’S NOT COMING?!” Sanji whipped around to face Zoro, and approached the swordsman angrily, “WHY NOT?! Did you do something to her!?”

“Kaili!” Hearing my name, I looked through the sea of villagers until I came across a familiar one pushing her way past Yosaku and Johnny as she approached, “Come down and let me take another look at you before you go!”

Nodding at her, I quickly moved towards the rope ladder and swung myself over the side of Merry before pausing briefly. My eyes flickered towards Luffy, who was complaining to Sanji. The cook was hardly listening, though, as his attention was focused on Zoro. Usopp was pulling at the sail’s ropes, trying to get the ship ready for departure as soon as Nami arrived. I briefly considered letting Luffy know where I was going, but I stopped myself. While the rubber man was now my captain, he was a _pirate_ captain. Sure, the crew’s hierarchy was just as important as a Marine’s…

But being a pirate meant having a lot more freedom. Instead of the rigid and strict teachings of Marines, a pirate crew didn’t have to alert their captain to every action they took. Even if that wasn’t the way of pirate crews, it seemed to be the case with Luffy’s.

With that in mind, I descended the rope rungs quickly and placed my feet on the last bit of solid ground I would feel underfoot for a while.

“I thought you would at least come say goodbye, youngin’.” Elder Mara was beside me in an instant, “I know you thanked me and my family for letting you stay in our home when you let us know you were going to be sleeping in the ship last night… But that hardly counts as a ‘goodbye’!”

My eyes traced the outline of my feet guiltily as she chastised me. Nami had suggested that I tried sleeping in the ship last night to get used to sleeping on a swaying ship (and how to climb out of a hammock in the morning – a more difficult feat than I originally thought). While she immediately claimed the bed for her own, she did show me how to properly store the hammocks and pull them down from their storage above the ceiling of the women’s quarters.

To be honest, my first experience with a hammock surprisingly turned out to be comfortable (besides the hard fall I took to escape from its ropey clutches in the morning). A bed was rather constrictive compared to a hammock, and if I had to be sleeping on a bed while swaying back and forth I doubted I would be able to cope well. Hammocks righted themselves on the waves, I discovered. It was obvious when I thought about it now, but having a suspended bed kind of made it difficult to discern what was upright when my understanding of ‘upright’ shifted with the Merry.

“Sorry, Elder Mara. I meant to come and see you, but things got busy before I had the chance.”

She squinted her eyes as she scrutinized me, but she eventually relented and instead reached out to grab my left hand. As she carefully inspected the red lines that coloured the skin, she spoke in a hushed tone.

“I’ve been asking around about Elian Coris and Gristlock Bellwether.” It took me a moment to remember the conversation I had with the old women about Grist’s lineage, “It seems that Gristlock Bellwether was part of the Marine battleship commanded by… ah, what was his name? His son is high up in the Marines now? That Sireon fellow.”

My heart stopped, but that went unnoticed by Elder Mara as she continued speaking.

“Ah well, anyway. That Sireon was the commander of the Marine battleship that Gristlock was stationed at. Apparently, they got along well, as the marines that came to tell Elian about his death were sent directly by that Sireon fellow.” She paused, returning my hand to me before continuing, “According to the Coris family themselves, that Sireon came to take Elian off the island himself. I don’t know how reliable that is – that Annabelle Coris can make up quite the outrageous story _just_ to boost her own ego, but… there’s always some sort of grain of truth in them too.”

I felt her eyes drill into me, but I was still trying to figure out what this new information meant. Around forty years ago my grandfather was in the navy, and from what I hear he was fairly influential. Since my father was currently thirty-eight years old, he would’ve at least been at the island with some sort of caregiver with him. If Grist was the son of this woman, there should’ve been some sort of information about her that–

...Where Grist came from didn’t matter. He was more of a father to me than my own at this point, and if there was anything that I knew about Grist it was that he was a good person. Even if my father or Grist kept their pasts from me, it didn’t matter.

I was a pirate, now. The only things that mattered now was the sea below me, the sky above and sailing to the place where those two met. I left everything else behind for a reason: and I’d be damned if I let what I already turned my back on keep me from venturing forth towards all the horizons I could reach.

Perhaps it was a good thing that all my possessions not on my body were currently at the bottom of the ocean because of those Fishmen. If nothing else, I was starting my life anew: as a pirate.

“–Kaili?”

“Ah! Thank you, Elder Mara. That’s very good to know.”

“I hope so, dear.” She stared at me for an uncomfortable length of time before continuing, “Your arm’s healing nicely. The lines should fade in a few days or so.”

With Elder Mara’s diagnosis, said arm would be the only injury taking a long time to heal. The bruises on my body had already become less tender, and my right leg had returned to it’s usual state. Even though the scars had faded back into the natural colouring of my skin (to the point of which that the slightly different colouring was only noticeable to those who knew where the lines drew themselves over my legs) I was still all too aware of how my illness was still trying to consume me. As the scars on my right leg had advanced to the crook of my knee as a result of my own actions, I resolved to be far more cautious with nearing seawater. 

“Alright. Thanks for everything, Elder Mara.

“No. Thank _you_ ,” She eyed the Merry Go as the loud voices of my crewmates called out from the deck, “and the rest of you pirates for what you’ve done here. Cocoyashi and Gosa will never forget what you’ve done.”

With a grateful smile and nod, I clutched onto the rope ladder. As one foot was placed into the bottom rung, Elder Mara spoke again.

“You enjoy yourself, youngin’. Stay safe, and don’t get into too much trouble.”

As I pulled myself up over the side of Merry and found a seat on the railing of the ship, I met her eye and laughed, “You do know we’re _pirates_ , right? I’m pretty sure we’re the definition of ‘trouble’ and ‘danger’.”

She chuckled at that, shaking her head as she was swallowed back into the throng of people.

**“RAISE THE SAIL AND GET THE SHIP MOVING!”** Nami appeared on the road and her voice rang loud and clear to everyone. As the villager talked amongst themselves about what she meant, Luffy repeated what Nami commanded.

“Raise the sail. We’re leaving!”

All at once, everyone scurried around to get the ship ready to sail. Suddenly it was just myself and Luffy standing still as Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji ran through their seemingly rehearsed patterns. Well, I suppose as the newest crewmember (who also had very little knowledge about how to control such a large ship) it was only natural to feel so out of place.

“Hm? Kaili, what are you doing?” Luffy’s voice drew me away from trying to figure out what each member was trying to do and how I could help.

“Uh… I’m not entirely sure.” After all, Zoro was raising the anchor, Usopp was lowering the sail, and Sanji had disappeared into the galley… Everything seemed to be under control, so what _should_ I be doing at the moment?

“Ah, I see.”

“Luffy! What are you doing? Come help me with the sail!” Usopp called out, and Luffy stood up suddenly and ran over to help the sniper as he laughed.

…And then there was only _one_ person standing around. Great.

“Hey, Kaili.” I tried not to look overwhelmed and completely out of my element as I turned towards the green-haired swordsman… It was safe to say I failed completely, not that Zoro gave any indication of it, “If you wanna do something useful, pull in the anchor’s rope.”

Jumping at the chance to do something, I quickly made my way into the cannon deck underneath the front deck as Zoro was still pulling the anchor up. With a quick glance to the rope wrapped around the capstan, I discerned that the wheel had to be pushed in a counter-clockwise motion for the rope to be pulled in from outside the hull. Setting Kikoeru against the wall, I grabbed one of the spokes and began pushing. Being careful not to trip over the rope as I made my way around several times over until the slack the rope had from Zoro’s efforts had some tension again.

Unsure of how to stop the capstan from unspooling the rope I wound around the base of the mechanism, and not seeing any sort of ‘locking’ mechanism around, I tentatively released the wooden spoke from my grip. As the wheel failed to move, it obviously only unraveled when someone was pushing the wheel clockwise.

As I made a mental note of my experience with the capstan, I decided to get Nami or Usopp to give me another tour of the ship – this time not based on figuring out _where_ everything was, but _how_ everything worked (the main concern was learning how to direct the sail, and what _exactly_ my role was supposed to be when Merry was in motion).

Speaking of Merry being in motion, I could feel the subtle rock of the vessel get stronger as the ship was quickly steered away from the dock. Strapping Kikoeru onto my body and closing the door behind me, I came out onto the empty deck. Spotting Sanji leaving the galley and heading towards the back of the ship, I ran up the stairs and quickly joined the rest of the crew.

Nami had apparently decided to leave her hometown without saying goodbye to anyone, and with the way she was zig-zagging her way through the crowd – they had noticed and were trying to stop her.

“Hey, is it okay to let her leave like this?” Sanji observed the scene warily, and while I thought his question would go unanswered, Luffy responded almost immediately.

“It’s her decision. She should leave the way she wants.”

I found myself nodding absent-mindedly at the captain’s words as the gap between the ship and the docks steadily increased. Instead of worrying over her choice of departure, I now found myself worrying if she was going to be able to jump onto the ship.

Before the ship could get any farther away, Nami reached the edge of the docks and jumped. Tense seconds passed as my heart rattled in my chest as I watched her figure, readying myself to use my Devil Fruit powers to help her make the last foot or two if necessary. Luckily, it wasn’t. She cleared the water easily and landed securely on the railing before hopping down onto the deck of the Going Merry.

A stunned silence crept over the chatty villagers as Nami then lifted her shirt… and numerous wallets and purses cascaded down onto the wooden flooring. After a few moments of registering what had happened, the villagers started patting themselves down.

“My wallet’s gone!”

“So’s mine!”

“She took mine as well!”

“That Nami!!”

Nami waved coyly at the receding figures as she giggled, “Take care, everybody~!”

With that, our little pirate ship left Cocoyashi Village as I assumed many did – with the villagers angrily calling after us.

“Way to go, Nami!” Sanji gave our navigator a happy smile and a thumbs-up while Luffy laughed in the background at the angry villagers.

“Who knows when she’ll betray us again…”

“Hey. You haven’t changed one bit, Nami.”

Usopp’s unimpressed monotone words as well as Zoro’s comment went unanswered as Nami spun around and began calling out her goodbyes to the villagers, who’s angry calls soon turned to well-wishes once Nami started to happily wave at them.

“That’s right… She _did_ steal the Merry Go at Baratie, didn’t she?” I mumbled thoughtfully to myself as the islanders soon blended into the island, “Jeeze, that seems like such a long time ago…”

“Oh, Kaili...” Usopp shrugged his shoulders and let out an exaggerated sigh that sounded like it contained far too many worries than the young man’s life could possibly contain, “For the great Captain Usopp, whom eight thousand pirates swear loyalty to, it was just another day in the life of a notorious pirate.”

“So… The great Captain Usopp gets betrayed all the time?” I threw Usopp a cheeky grin as he blinked and recounted his previous statement.

“W-what? No! That’s not what–” As he realized his mistake, he stumbled over his words in an attempt to backtrack… But the sorry excuse for what came out of his mouth was quickly silenced by Luffy’s deadpan statement.

“You kind of set yourself up for that one, Usopp.”

“I did not!”

“Did too.”

“Did not!”

“Did too!”

“Did too!”

“Did not!” Luffy blinked, “No, wait! You tricked me!”

But it was too late.

“Hahaha! Jeeze Luffy, I didn’t realize that anyone fell for that trick anymore. It’s basically the oldest trick in the book!”

Somehow that conversation lead to Luffy chasing Usopp around the ship, nearly bumping into the rest of us several times before Nami yelled at them to go and fool around on the middle deck. They listened, begrudgingly, and soon everything had fallen into what I could only assume was a temporary peace.

“Alright, well I’m going to make some breakfast.” Sanji rolled up his sleeves before sidling up next to Nami, “Any requests, ladies~?”

“I would _love_ a refreshing drink, Sanji _-kun_ ~*” Nami gently trailed her fingers down the side of Sanji’s face as she spoke, provoking the love-struck Sanji to nearly swoon.

“Anything for you, Nami _-swan_ ~!” He then turned his attention towards me, but I easily waved him off and he happily twirled himself into the galley.

Sometime during all that, Zoro had disappeared. It wasn’t hard for me to locate him, though. With the close quarters between us, I could easily pinpoint where Zoro was on the ship based off the lone sword strapped to his side. According to the sword’s whereabouts, he had walked over to the front deck of the Merry Go.

So, it was just myself and Nami.

“Getting used to things around here?”

Turning towards Nami as she crouched down to pull the Belli from the wallets she collected, I gave her a nervous smile, “Well, kind of. I’m not used to being on a crew of any kind or what I should be doing to help steer this big ship…”

Nami smiled at me as I bent down to help her collect the money (although she watched the money _very_ carefully while it was in my hands), and shrugged her shoulders.

“It does take some getting used to, especially with those idiots running around all the time.” She nodded her head to gesture towards the mid-deck, home to Luffy and Usopp currently, “And as for working around the ship… Well, after breakfast I’ll help you out with how things run around here ship-wise. But honestly, the guys pretty much have controlling Merry down – you might be better off being a sort of back-up navigator with that Devil Fruit power of yours. Plus, it might help if we’re not getting the right wind and need to make a quick escape.”

“So, where are we heading now?”

“Well, I’d say Luffy wants us to head straight to the Grand Line, but I’m thinking I’ll be able to convince him into stopping in at Loguetown before we try our luck at the Grand Line.”

“So… that would take, what? A day and a half, or two day’s travel?”

“Hmm… It’ll be closer to two in Merry. And that’s if we get good weather and keep a strong all the way.” She smiled, “Anyway, we’re on course right now so it’d be best to just relax while we can – it normally gets pretty crazy on this crew.”

“I don’t doubt it.”

With that, I handed all the money I had gathered from the wallets and purses over to Nami and headed towards the mid-deck, debating to go speak with the swordsman for a bit as a strong warm wind pushed us onwards.

* * *

Later that day…

Chapter 17.5: All Ships Sail to Loguetown

* * *

“Hey sir, you got a minute?”

There was a brief knock on the door before it opened without waiting for a reply. A short boy with blonde hair and amethyst eyes that held a mischievous twinkle strode into his superior’s office/room and came to a halt in front of the large mahogany desk. He rocked back and forth on his heels, eyes tracing the movement of pen on paper as the blue-suited man refused to acknowledge his presence for the moment before moving around the room curiously.

It wasn’t the first time the boy had been in the room, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last… But he always felt that every visit warranted a new examination – his superior did enjoy his secrets and puzzles. It only took one misplaced item to provide a clue to how the mysterious man ticked, and seeing how after the many years spent under his command the boy was still mostly clueless about the inner workings of the man’s mind…

Well, it only proved that he was _always_ careful. Even _if_ half of the times he had entered the room were unsolicited and unannounced (other than the brief knock that the man reminded him was common courtesy), there was hardly a hair out of place. Both on the man, and the room.

“Captain Mirai.”

“I thought we had moved past the titles, _Vice Admiral_ Kroitel~”

“I _thought_ we had talked about knocking, Captain Mirai.”

“We _have_ , and I _did_.”

Silence ensued as the man lifted his eyes from his desk to send a white-blue glare towards the boy. Had the amethyst-eyed boy been any other officer on board, he might’ve quaked in his shoes. The Vice Admiral was known for being strict with rules and conduct, after all. But, the boy was not any other officer. He was Captain Mirai Caspian – and therefore, he stared down the uniquely coloured eyes evenly.

“What are you here for?”

“Headquarters just released a new bounty for a pirate in the East Blue.”

“Last time I checked, Captain, we weren’t in the East Blue.”

“The pirate in question was given a starting bounty of thirty million Beri.” The blonde fiddled with the wanted poster held behind his back, a smirk pulling at his lips.

“Unusual, for the East Blue. But none of our concern.”

“They say he’s taken down Buggy, Krieg, and Arlong.”

“Is there anything else, Captain?”

“Well, you see…” Mirai placed the wanted poster of Monkey D. Luffy on the Vice Admiral’s desk, continuing to rock back and forth on his heels as he watched the white-haired man carefully, “This particular poster might be more interesting when you notice the Sireon heirloom in it.”

That, had caught the man’s attention. His eyes looked over the picture of the poster, easily identifying three pirates caught in a single picture. Up front was a man grinning wildly in a straw hat (who took up most of the picture), then there was the back of a pirate in the corner… And patting the back of the corner-pirate was a young light blonde-haired woman who bore a close resemblance to his sickly daughter with the Kikoeru strapped to her back.

“Now I don’t know about you, but I find that to be a _very_ curious photo. I know _I’m_ wondering how in the world Kikoeru made its way from the Red-Haired crew’s Kura to this girl… Aren’t you?”

“Where was this taken, Mirai?”

“Sources say it was taken at Arlong Park – apparently it was hidden in the Conomi Islands without us knowing. Smells like some rotten Marines to me.”

“Mirai…”

“I know, I know~”

“…Set a course for the East Blue, Mirai.”

“As you wish, Kroitel. Any particular place we’re heading?”

“Loguetown. Contact the Marine Base there and inform them of our… friendly visit.”

“Aye, aye. It’ll take about two days to get there, since we’re so close to the Calm Belt already.” Mirai gave a salute and ran out the open door. Before he closed it behind him, he called out, “I’ll start on the preparations.”

Kroitel, now alone, stared down at the bounty. His eyes still lingered on the girl and Kikoeru. With a low disgruntled growl breaking the silence, he pushed himself away from his desk and approached one of the Transponder Snails lining the back of the room. With the receiver dwarfed by his large hand, it only took two rings for the other end to pick up.

“Grist.”

“…Kroitel.”

“Kura visited?”

“Yes. She came with a Devil Fruit, taught Kailina how to fight, and they both left only a few days ago.”

“You didn’t think to inform me?”

“I did, but Kura kept the transponder snail with her the whole time to prevent me from doing so. When she left, she hid it on the island.”

“I see…” The man ran fingers through his hair, letting out a long sigh before continuing.

**“You’re fired.”**

“…Kroitel?”

The conversation didn’t continue for long after that.

* * *

***Please Note***

* * *

**Sanji-kun*:** Nami uses the suffix _-kun_ for Sanji when she’s trying to get something from him. Otherwise, it’s just plain ol’ Sanji for her (as I’m not too fond of using suffixes in English writing – the only Japanese suffixes used consistently throughout this fanfic will be Sanji’s nicknames for Nami and Robin).

[A drawing of the 'edited' Wanted Poster is on my DeviantArt. It has Kailina in the picture, so check it out if you're interested!]

* * *

So, back in University once again... Fun times were had by all.

Aaaaaaanyway,

**Next time on the ToT, a One Piece fanfic...**

When will the Straw Hats find out about their new bounty?

How will Kaili react to having her picture on a wanted poster?

Will Kroitel and Mirai bump into the Straw Hats in Loguetown?!

A new weapon for Kaili!?

ZORO AND KAILI GETTING A LITTLE CLOSER?!

You'll have to tune in next chapter to find out... :3


	18. The Bounty of Straw Hat Luffy!

On the Tides of Time

Chapter 18: The Bounty of Straw Hat Luffy!

There had been three meals since Merry left the port of Cocoyashi – one day of travelling and I already felt closer to the pirate crew than my own immediate family (excluding my brother, who I either favoured or angrily cursed depending on the day). But while I grew accustomed to the schedule the Going Merry’s crew ran on, there was one thing I had overlooked during my decision to join the pirates. The fourth meal that we were currently delving into – a spectacularly cooked breakfast – only further cemented my slight oversight. Mealtimes were… an ordeal. To put it in the very lightest of terms.

It was like being thrown from our adventures on the blue seas into a dense and winding jungle where I had no idea how to proceed forwards. I now fully recognized my rather sheltered upbringing and the strict rules and etiquettes that had been recited at me so many times that it seemed like the fibres of my very being acted on its own accord to follow them. When I caught myself mentally reciting the steps, the droning thoughts had barely registered until the pandemonium that erupted around me as soon as the last plate of food touched the table with a muted clink.

Shudders wracked through my body as I recalled my first reaction to a meal with the pirates – a mixed between stunned and horribly confused. I managed to (somewhat) smoothly pass off my startled reaction as just being excited to eat Sanji’s food (which made him so happy it pulled me out of my discomfort enough to taste his food with a smile on my face – the food then did the rest and I somehow managed to make it through the rest of the meal). The other two had followed in quite the same manner.

“Hey, Luffy! Give that back, I’ve told you before to not steal MY food!”

“What’s the matter Usopp? You pushed all of it to the side of your plate! It’s a waste!”

“It’s not a waste – I was planning on eating it!”

“Then why didn’t you eat it already!?” “Because I was saving it for last – it’s my favourite!”

“But it’s my favourite, too!”

"EAT YOUR OWN FOOD!”

Luckily, the first three meals had prepared me for this one, and with my slow desensitization to the amount of ‘rules’ they were blatantly breaking, I found myself laughing alongside the reasonably well-mannered Nami (instead of grimacing uncomfortably) at Luffy’s thieving antics.

“Sanji _-kun_ , could you please pour me another drink~?”

“Anything for you, Nami-swan~!!”

“Hey, while you’re at it, bring over some more beer.”

“Get it yourself, you shitty swordsman.”

“What did you say, you damn cook?!”

Sanji somehow managed to gracefully refill Nami’s glass without even breaking his glaring match with Zoro. It was miraculous that they hadn’t killed each other already, as their arguments never seemed to end – they never really allowed them to die out. Although it felt like I was blatantly ignoring the murderous looks they sent each other, I believed that they might be leaning towards the ‘friendly’ type of hating each other after fighting together at Arlong Park.

“Heymph Snjeh, gephm shmur juss?”

Luffy broke the glaring match (which neither party seemed to be willing to back down from) by producing some string of sounds around the mouth full of food that he continued to stretch as he crammed more food in. Even through just eating food, Luffy never ceased to amaze – each time I thought he had reached the limit of the amount of food he could squirrel away, he managed to balloon his cheeks out even more.

“You do know that the food isn’t going to run away, right?”

He stopped for a moment at my words, but after a few more sounds he apparently thought were words, “Buh Kailhi, it doesh dishappear…” he continued to stretch his hands across the table to steal the food still left on the plates (although apparently mine and Nami’s plates were untouchable – a few thieving encounters and Sanji keeping the captain from having dessert managed to ensure our food’s safety from this black hole).

“It doesn’t disappear, Luffy! It’s OUR food that YOU take!” Usopp leaned back in his chair as he cleaned the food out of his teeth, somehow being able to understand what the captain was saying. Although, with the solemn nods shared between Nami and Zoro, perhaps it was more of a learned ability than anything.

Luffy’s sticky hands then sought a new target now that Usopp’s plate was clean and managed to snag food from both Zoro’s and Sanji’s plates, causing two new bruises to form on the rubber man’s head.

“Shitty swordsman, if you didn’t distract me I would still have my food!”

“You’re the one who was distracting me!”

“What did you say?!”

The glaring contest was back in full swing, and with Nami’s barely restrained chuckling at the two as well as Usopp’s quiet snickering as he poked at Luffy, the three of us burst out laughing as the three powerhouses started to scarf down the rest of the food as fast as they could. The laughter came and went in waves, heavily influenced by who was winning the food war. Zoro and Sanji would compete against one another, scooping mounds of food on their plates (to out-eat each other with) and then Luffy would simply swoop in and scoop the collected food up into his mouth. Which then caused our laughter. Then Sanji and Zoro would clue into their lost food, and team up to venture into Luffy’s horde before one of them pissed off the other and they began competing again.

It was a never-ending cycle that the trio didn’t seem to realize was happening, and did absolutely nothing to stop it from continuing – much to the amusement of myself, Nami, and Usopp.

Eventually, only a mountain of emptied plates remained and everyone had been well-fed. A moment of quiet passed, and I desperately tried to cool my reddened cheeks as I gently tried to loosen the muscles in my stomach as they had clenched up during my laughing fit. Unfortunately, Luffy ended up laughing.

Which made Usopp laugh.

Which made Nami laugh.

Which soon made me laugh when she locked eyes with me.

And before I knew it, the galley was filled with the laughter of everyone as my body ached at the uncontrollable smiling and laughing that always came at the end of meals on the Merry.

So yes, mealtimes were an ordeal. But not in the way I was expecting.

“Alright, alright… Pfffft! Ahahahaha!” Usopp choked out some words in an attempt to stop laughing, and it managed to start sobering the rest of us up, “Kaili and Nami are on dish duty, so let’s let ‘em clear the table.”

Yesterday the crew got together and drew up a new dish-washing schedule. With two new members (although it only seemed like I was a new member, as Sanji seemed to be fitting in smoothly), Nami decided to shift some shared duties around so that it would be a balanced share. But, as she asked for preferences on duties, I signed up for a lot of dishwashing duties – and so, most of the schedule pinned to the wall of the Galley had my name neatly scrawled under ‘dishwashers’.

Usopp stood, and as he tried to contain a sputtering laugh behind his hand, ran out the door. Luffy quickly followed behind him, but somehow managed to trip over himself and bowl Usopp over the railing and onto the deck below. A new bout of laughter soon started from the two, but as Zoro left and Nami and I ushered the cook out of his kitchen, the door closed smoothly and the laughter was muffled.

Nami and I exchanged glances, and a wry smile spread itself across her face, “Is it just me, or does your stomach hurt too?” She started to bring the stacks of dishes over to the counter, and I quickly followed her example as our conversation continued.

“I don’t believe I’ve ever laughed this hard in my life.”

“That’s good. You seemed a little out of your element yesterday.”

“Yeah…” I sent her a sheepish smile as I took up the task of washing the dishes in soapy lukewarm water, passing her a cleaned plate for her to dry, “Yesterday seems like a lifetime ago…”

“Hahaha! You can say that again!”

Nami had been a much-needed stability yesterday, and I spent most of my time awkwardly hanging around her after she informed me of how the Merry ran at sea – Sanji would be following her directions and steering the ship, and Usopp ensured Nami’s directions were followed by Zoro and Luffy when changing the position of the sails. Nami assigned me to work with her and make sure that we had the right heading and the right wind at all times (as I was supposedly the only one with a slightly-better-than-basic understanding of navigation), and with my devil fruit, Nami figured I could pick up on forming storms even before she could (which I later learned was miraculously quickly, according to Usopp). It was a little daunting, but Nami promised she’d allot some time to instructing me formally about storms and help in the technicalities of my abilities (as she nearly fainted when she found out that I was basing powers solely on intuition).

It was overall reassuring to have a somewhat normal person on the pirate crew (other than Usopp, that is), but I quickly learned that gambling with Nami was a death sentence to your wallet. While I had managed to prevent her from playing for money with the few rounds of cards we played (after she taught me the rules), it was clear from my pristine losing streak that she was not one to bet against.

“I know it’s only been a day, but you’ll be surprised with how easy it is to fit in here.”

“Mm. I know what you mean – I’m already feeling more at home.”

“I’m really happy to hear that, Kaili.” She smiled kindly at me, and I returned the gesture, “What do you think of the others so far?”

Luffy had the ability to make me worry over his day-to-day functions with that mind-blowingly reckless behaviour of his, but that also kind of made me appreciate being on his crew even more. After all, Luffy completely trusted us to take care of him should any sort of misstep happen. Sure, nearly having a heart-attack at the way Luffy hangs off Merry’s figurehead probably wasn’t the best way to figure this out, but after his hands slipped and he plunged downwards it was only a matter of seconds before he was saved by Usopp – who was coincidentally walking by at the same time. It almost ended in disaster, but by the time Usopp pulled him up and gave him a smack over the head, all was forgiven.

Speaking of the sniper, Usopp was always a treat to be around. He was usually able to read the mood and decide whether to be funny or reassuring or serious – all of which he could pull off with ease. After Nami had subtly sent me away from hanging around her, Usopp easily scooped me up as soon as he saw the lost look on my face with a flourish – the trials and tribulations of Captain Usopp and his eight thousand men had to be told to someone, and I was _just_ the right audience.

My interactions with Zoro had been few and far between – he seemed to enjoy doing his own thing with no disturbances. But the few silences shared between us was far from unpleasant. He woke up around the same time I did, and we both used that early morning light to get some training in (although he continued his intense training regiment throughout the entire day while I ended my training after breakfast, after hours of being awake). We had exchanged sleepy morning greetings, and then only another word or two was said before the others woke up: we were simply enjoying each other’s presence as we did the same thing in the same space, but separately. Well, I could only _hope_ he shared the same sentiment at this point.

My dealings with Sanji… were a little more on the uneasy side. For one, it was frustrating to see him easily transitioning onto the pirate crew when we had joined at roughly the same time. While he had much more experience than me at taking care of a ship and sailing with some… rowdy crewmembers…. I was kind of hoping that he wouldn’t find his place so smoothly and that my awkwardness would have some company. But, there was nothing I truly disliked about the dandy long-legs. His over-the-top flirtations had somewhat died down (besides his extravagant declarations every now and then that usually involved grabbing my hand) due to Nami’s mostly positive responses. With more of his flirtations directed towards the navigator, I quickly found that Sanji was quite kind and thoughtful once he mellowed out. He actually didn’t talk too much, preferring to be a listener rather than a talker – which contributed greatly to the relaxing conversation we had when washing dishes after last night’s supper. While I spoke for most of it, it was endearing the way excitement showed through his every action when the topic of his dream – the All Blue – came up.

“I… like them a lot.” I blinked, realizing I had just blurted out my thoughts without meaning to, “I-I mean, given that we’ve all just met, I hope that I can continue to get to know you guys. I know I can’t do much yet but I’ll…” I trailed off.

They were all leagues ahead of me in experience – fighting or otherwise. They might not realize the huge difference between my skills and theirs yet, but compared to them I can’t do much at all.

My foot absently trailed down the back of my leg, tracing yet another difference between myself and the crew I was finding my place on, “But… I’ll do what I can.”

The lukewarm water circled the drain, leaving soap bubbles clinging to the basin. Turning the tap, cold water rushed from the tap and washed away the stubborn bubbles easily.

“Nobody here wants anything more from you, Kaili.” Nami passed me a stack of dry plates and I dutifully stepped away from the sink to search for the cupboard they belonged in as she continued speaking whilst reaching above the counter to put the glassware away, “Take Luffy, for example.”

“There’s a bunch of stuff he can’t do. He can’t – they go in that cupboard, middle shelf–” Nami gestured towards the cupboard in question as she noticed my random searching, “He can’t use swords, navigate, cook, lie, or-” She sent me a loaded glance, and stopped herself from continuing, “And well, you wouldn’t expect him to… go swinging swords around, would you?”

“No, I suppose not.”

“That’s because it’s not something Luffy can do.” She smiled at me, laying a gentle hand on my shoulder after the last of the dishes were put away, “That’s why we have nakama who you can count on to do what you can’t.”

My worries disappeared at her words, and my shoulders lowered as I let out a deep breath. It was as she said: I can’t do what I can’t do, but I can do what I can do. It was simple, but somehow, I had overlooked it. With a firm nod at Nami, I cemented my determination to improve enough so that I could back up my nakama when I could do what they couldn’t.

“Oi, Nami! Are you still in the galley?” Usopp’s voice brought Nami’s attention to the closed door of the galley, which didn’t muffle the sniper’s shouting, “The News-bird is here wondering if we want a paper!”

Nami squeezed my shoulder lightly before heading out onto the deck to track down the ‘News-bird’ Usopp was talking about.

A moment passed as I stood in the middle of the empty galley, taking a deep breath as the weight that had been hanging over my head no longer pressured me to find my place in the crew. After talking to Nami, I was slowly starting to believe that finding my place on Luffy’s crew was less of someone granting me my own position and more of creating my own space – one that would happen overtime, without my knowledge, until I looked back and realized I had already fell into my own pace with the crew.

It was just a hunch, but only time would tell how true this feeling would end up being.

With a small chuckle to myself, a few strides brought me to the galley’s door and I wrapped my fingers around the handle. While I planned to leave the galley and see what the others were up to, a slight tingling sensation at the nape of my neck stopped me in my tracks. My brow furrowed in concern as I recognized the sensation to be that of a blade calling out to me. Opening the door slowly, I stepped out onto the deck, the wind gently tugging at the light blond strands of hair tied into a neat ponytail as I surveyed the horizon we approached.

The call didn’t seem to be too far off-track to our original course. We had gotten a good wind and would be in sight of Loguetown in only a few hours (making our estimated time of arrival just before lunchtime). The blade seemed to pull my gaze slightly to the right of Merry’s figurehead, and judging on how far my ability to sense blades stretched (and as I just clued into this one), it would only be a half-hour at most until we came across it.

My fingers reached back to Kikoeru in order to get a better read on the blade, but my hands grasped nothing but air. The dual glaive was still where I had left it after washing up before breakfast: in the women’s cabin. An aggravated sigh escaped my lips before I refocused my attention on the blade, trying to sense what I could of its surroundings – namely, if it was currently being carried by another ship. Having a Marine interference so close to Loguetown would not bode well for our visit – especially since it had a Marine base on the island. Slipping my eyes closed, I focused all my attention on the blade, tuning out the commotion that was happening on the back deck even more than I already had (it was strange how quickly you got used to how boisterous they got after meals… and before meals… and, well, all the time really).

From what I could tell, it was a small blade – curled up on itself somewhere dark and underground. It was cold, surrounded by metal, but its location only changed based on the Merry’s speed. Its cries were constant, as if calling out for a lost parental figure when they had suddenly disappeared. So it was stationary, and alone. From the heaviness that it left on my heart, it had been that way for a while.

**KRASH!!**

**“GAAAAAAAH!!”**

My eyes snapped open at the loud commotion behind me, and I curiously followed the source to see Usopp writhing on the deck as Sanji guarded Nami’s tangerines while Luffy chuckled happily, unaware of Usopp’s apparent suffering. Nami was reclining on a chair while an umbrella shaded her from the sun, mumbling to herself as she flipped through the East Blue’s newspaper and completely ignoring Usopp as well.

“There was another coup d’état in Vira and Aldertown was hit heavily by a tropical storm…”

I started making my way towards Usopp, to see if he was okay, when Nami turned the page and a piece of paper fell loose from the newspaper. It caught everyone’s attention (except Zoro, who was hanging out on the front deck) and Usopp peeled his fingers from covering his eyes just in time to also see the words: Wanted Dead or Alive – Monkey D. Luffy on the paper.

It took a few seconds before what my eyes were seeing to really sink in, although it took the others significantly less time to react.

**“AAAAAAAAAAH!”**

“Uh-oh…”

**“OH!”**

**“Oh…”**

A picture of Luffy broadly grinning from the poster was an eye-catcher. Although looking back and forth from the picture to Luffy granted exactly zero doubts whether anyone (after seeing the poster) would mistake Luffy for anything other than the pirate in question. It was impossible not to recognize him. And there was no way that the poster wouldn’t catch the attention of bounty hunters and Marines alike – not with the thirty million Beri price tag now attached to our captain’s head.

What had taken so long for my mind to process was the two figures in the corner of the picture. Usopp’s back was turned to whoever took the photograph, so at least he could pass for someone else, but there was a figure beside him patting his back – me. Only half of my face was shown (as the picture had been taken while I had turned side-on to Usopp) and I could only thank whatever deity that existed that my eyes had been closed (an occurrence that happened frequently whenever a camera was around that was, for once, working in my favour) as it would be nearly impossible to mistake the eyes of a Sireon for anything else. It granted me some anonymity, at the very least. Although that anonymity was counter-acted the second I caught sight of Kikoeru strapped to my back in the picture.

And unfortunately, Kikoeru would be easily recognized from this picture to anyone who managed to glance away from Luffy’s grin and take in the other two figures caught in the photograph. Seeing as the picture had a relatively large area on the wanted poster, it wasn’t that hard to realize there were three pirates in the shot.

“This… is bad.”

With the poster now being distributed with the newspaper, that means that the Marines must’ve had it for at least a day or so and gave it out to all the branch offices. That means that the Marines at Loguetown would know who we are and might even know that we would be heading their way…

Not only that, but Kairius and Kroitel were now going to find out that I joined a pirate crew…

A shot of cold fear spread through my being, and I instinctively shivered at all the worst-case scenarios that ran through my head. Most of which involved Merry sinking to the bottom of the ocean and the rest of us getting hauled off by the Marines while my father looked on.

“Hahahaha! We’re wanted dead or alive! We’re worth thirty million Beri!”

Luffy and Usopp started cheering, happily dancing around before Usopp got hold of the bounty and showed off his debut to Sanji, who looked a little sullen.

“Look! I’m known all over the world, Sanji!”

“You’re grinning like an idiot, that’s nothing to brag about.”

“Don’t be jealous! If you get to be a big shot, they might put you on a poster, too~!”

“Let’s hurry up and sail to the Grand Line, guys!”

“Yeah!”

Sanji, Luffy, and Usopp were now celebrating the bounty happily.

Watching them dance around, I managed to brush off my fears for the moment.

“Those guys don’t understand the seriousness of the situation, yet again.” Nami rubbed her temples as she walked over to me, “With that kind of bounty, Navy Headquarters was probably involved, and now bounty hunters will probably be coming after us – big time bounty hunters. And if that wasn’t enough, heading into Loguetown might be tricky now, too…”

She started to mutter to herself, and I could practically see the wheels in her head turning as she came up with a plan about getting into (and hopefully, out of) Loguetown without getting noticed.

“Hey guys, there’s a small island on the horizon!” Zoro made his appearance on the back deck, and after noticing the poster in Usopp’s hands he raised an eyebrow at it, “Oh? We’ve got a bounty for thirty million Beri?”

“What? There shouldn’t be any island until we reach Loguetown according to my maps…”

The tingling sensation had gotten stronger, and as Nami and I walked to the front of Merry, the small island (small enough to only host a few palm trees), was unquestionably the source of the blade’s quiet voice.

“Ah, it’s only a small island, no wonder it’s not on the maps I stole from Buggy… We’ll continue–”

“-Wait, Nami!” She turned to me, waiting for me to continue, “We should check out that island. Just for a few minutes at least.”

“Oh?” She folded her arms and studied me curiously, “How come?”

“Well, there’s a blade buried there.” She stared at me blankly, “And, well, if someone took the time to bury a blade, they might’ve taken the time to bury something else, too?”

Nami glanced over at the island, and then returned her gaze to me.

“How do you know there’s something buried on that island?”

The explanation died on my tongue quickly. Sure, I could explain the fact that as a Sireon, I could hear the sound of spirits that inhabited blades if they were close enough. I could explain the range of affinities a blade’s spirit could take after, and how the affinity of a blade could only come to be realized once the spirit of the metal was strong enough to act as a vessel for the affinity… I could try to convince her that these spirits existed and that I wasn’t crazy…

But I, myself, knew very little of this ability and how to explain it. Not when Kura danced around the fine workings of a lot of her teachings. Not when doing so would link me, by blood, to a Marine Vice-Admiral that traversed the Grand Line easily and could probably obliterate our newly-formed pirate crew as it was right now. That is, if the titles the Navy handed out weren’t just handed out to whomever wanted them.

Or, I could simplify things.

“The same way you know when a storm’s coming.”

It wasn’t a lie. From what Usopp told me, Nami instinctively knew when and where a storm would strike, when the winds would pick up and from which direction they blew. It was the same for me, I just hadn’t realized it was the sharpened edges of metal calling out to me until Kura gave it a name. I didn’t know the ways I could gain information from the weapons until Kura mentioned that there was a way, and that my skills would strengthen in time.

Of course, she hadn’t mentioned that Kikoeru greatly fine-tuned this ability when I held the weapon, but the list of things she hadn’t mentioned to me was growing longer as the days passed.

“…Alright, Kaili.” Nami nodded at me before heading back towards the others, calling out her orders as she went, “Everyone, we’re going to be making a stop at that little island for a while, so get to your positions now!”

Our navigator smoothly guided the Going Merry to a halt as we neared the island, and except for Zoro and Usopp, everyone jumped from Merry’s deck and landed on the island after me. I could feel the green-haired swordsman watching me closely as I wandered around the small island with my eyes glued to the sand. Everyone’s eyes were on me, curious as to exactly why I had stopped the ship for an island with nothing on it.

Zoro’s intense gaze was the only one I was acutely aware of, though. It wasn’t like was suspicious – we had been past that stage for a while now – it felt more like he was highly curious. More so than the others. Like he was just a few puzzle pieces from completing part of a puzzle he’d been working on for a while, and if he blinked he might misalign the edges of the piece to the board.

With a few circles around where I felt the blade, I was fairly certain I found the place where the blade had been buried. Whenever I stepped closer to the one of the nearby palm trees, it felt as though the blade wasn’t as close to the surface. All that was left to do was to dig up the buried blade as well a anything else that was left behind.

“Sanji, Luffy, could you start digging right here?”

I pointed at the spot I drew an ‘x’ in the sand with my feet, and stepped out of the way. Nami came up next to me, noticeably excited at the notion of buried treasure.

“Anything for you, Mademoiselle~!”

“Alright! It’s like we’re digging for buried treasure!”

“That’s what you _are_ doing, Luffy.”

“Yeah, I know Usopp, but Kaili even marked it with an ‘X’!”

While Sanji was the first to start digging as Luffy and Usopp’s banter continued, as soon as Nami started to crack her knuckles (while sending out a vibe that even Luffy noticed) the rubber man took over the operation. Eventually, Sanji joined Nami and myself as we watched Luffy dig faster with his bare hands than what we would ever be able to do with shovels. A mountain of sand had been disturbed before I was waiting for Luffy to strike something, and I carefully started eyeing the handfuls of dirt that increased the size of the pile for anything that Luffy could’ve tossed while in his digging frenzy.

Luckily, I didn’t have to keep track of the contents for too long (even after a couple of minutes my eyes started to get tired from trying to follow the sand as it was thrown from the hole).

_Thunk._

“Hey, I hit something.”

Nami leapt down into the hole at those words, and after gently scooping some sand away from the area Luffy directed her to, she cried out in joy, “It’s a treasure chest! Hurry up and get it on board!”

Nami clamoured up the sand, and gratefully accepted Sanji’s helping hand as he took her place at the bottom of the pit. As soon as she was up, she ran over to me and gave me a bone-crushing hug.

“You found buried treasure! That’s amazing, Kaili! Did you sense anything on our way here? Do we need to turn back? If you sense anything else, be sure to let me know immediately so we can dig it up!”

As she spoke she dragged me back onto the Merry Go, clinging to my arm in excitement as Sanji and Luffy pulled a medium-sized chest loose from the sand. They attached two ropes to the handles of the chest, and Zoro and Usopp then pulled the chest on board as Sanji and Luffy followed it up to make sure it was steady as it was pulled over the railing.

With the chest now safely on Merry, Nami left my side to make short work of the lock (picking it with a practiced precision) and as she slowly lifted the lid of the wooden chest, the anticipation was nearly audible. Nami peered into the chest, and with a happy cry through open the lid with enough force that the hinges nearly snapped off.

“It’s not empty!”

The crew crowded around the chest, which surely enough, was filled with Beri. The coins were in good shape, but the bills were worn and dirty and had probably seen better days when the chest had been lowered into the ground. Money was money, however, and with the amount of Beri that seemed to be in the chest, there was enough to get some more gear for everyone at Loguetown as well as buy enough provisions to hopefully carry us to the next island in the Grand Line (because Luffy could eat a monstrous amount and who knew how far away the first island in the Grand Line was).

“What’s that doing in there, Nami?” Usopp pointed out something that distinctly wasn’t bills or coins, and I quickly identified it as the glossy black sheath of the blade I had sensed when Nami pulled it loose from the Beri keeping it in place.

“Hm? Oh, it looks like a dagger of some kind.”

It was around fifteen centimetres in length, and the handle of it was wrapped in a similar style to that of Zoro’s sword, but instead of the white colouring, this handle was wrapped in red material. A small finely decorated metal hand guard easily defined where the handle ended and where the sheath began.

Nami offered the dagger to me, pointing the handle towards me to take, “This is what you were sensing, then, so you hold onto it.”

I stared at the red handle blankly for a moment before accepting it and allowing Nami to return to counting the chest’s contents. The weapon wouldn’t be of any use to Zoro, the main wielder of swords this crew had, and having an extra blade on me couldn’t hurt (especially during close combat, and the dagger was small enough to be easily concealed with an addition or two to my usual outfit)…

The others quickly dispersed (after congratulating me on my find) to get the ship back on its course for Loguetown, and when I could no longer feel any eyes on me I pulled the dagger from its sheath.

It was a beautiful blade, and it sang happily in my hands as the first rays of sunlight in a long time touched its hidden metal. Only one side of the blade was sharpened, and as I scrutinized the edge, it was safe to say that it was still extremely sharp and it would be an incredibly bad idea to test it further through the means of my own person.

I did reach out to touch the metal, however, and in the second my fingertips brushed the back of the cool metal the blade’s spirit spoke softly in the back of my mind.

_“My name is Kogitsune*.”_

And as it hummed in my hands as I nearly dropped it in my surprise before it fell silent once more.

* * *

Chapter 18.5: The Message of a Bounty

* * *

A large black-feathered bird landed in front of the awaiting duo and the four-legged companion that rolled on the ground behind them. The red-haired woman flashed a silver coin at the winged creature briefly, as if the action were more of a greeting than anything else, and eagerly awaited its words.

“Good day to you, Kenny.” The bird moved one of its wings over its chest as it bowed deeply towards the woman before nodding at the muscular man standing beside her who offered a similar greeting.

“Hey, Criath. What’s the news today?”

The bird kept a suspicious eye towards the war dog that padded over silently during the greetings exchanged between the two parties. The woman rolled her eyes and commanded the large furry companion to lay down, to which it immediately complied, as she removed the bag the human-sized bird wore.

As the messenger bag was gently placed on the floor, the large talons of Criath inputted a code on the special locking mechanism and retrieved a stack of paper-clipped papers from within, handing it to the woman who readily accepted it. As Kenny flipped through the papers as the black-haired man beside her peered over her shoulder at them, Criath closed the bag and easily shrugged it back onto his body securely while ensuring his wings weren’t hindered by its positioning.

“Hey, wait! Go back to that wanted poster.”

Kenny sent a sideways glance to her companion, but shrugged and turned back the page. A blue star had been marked on the corner of the bounty, as had a small ‘E’ inside a square. The woman raised an eyebrow at the pirate captured on the picture, chuckling at the cheeky carefree grin he sent towards whoever looked at the poster.

What the woman took note of during this more detailed scrutiny of the poster, instead of quickly flipping through the pages and pausing to scan the sheet based on what was scribbled onto the corner, was the familiar weapon that was hung from the back of the young woman also captured in the shot.

“Hm… Monkey D. Luffy, huh? According to the markings, we should keep a close eye on him in the future.” She stole a glance towards the man as she whistled at the amount of Beri the man was worth, “Thirty million in the East Blue? Huh, no wonder they’re keeping an eye on him.”

“Besides, if that girl managed to make Kura part with Kikoeru, that’s no laughing matter either.” With still no response from the man as he seemed to be memorizing every pixel of the photograph, she elbowed him in his shirtless side, “You know him or something, hotshot?”

“Oh, sorry. He’s my brother, I haven’t seen him in a while so it’s nice to see him doing well for himself.” He gave Kenny a proud smile, “He’s definitely someone to keep an eye on.”

Kenny raised an eyebrow at this, and reached around Criath to grab a pen from the unlocked bag. Scribbling a few hasty lines on the back of the poster before signing her name with large cursive loops, she folded up the poster and placed it carefully into the large bird’s bag and returned the pen. With a clink she locked it again and gave Criath a friendly pat on the shoulder.

“Make sure that gets to ol’ Kura, wouldya, Criath?”

“It would be my honour to deliver it to Kura the Saviour.”

With that, Criath bowed once more before lifting into the air with a powerful flap from his immense jet-black wings, taking only a few minutes before fading from the duo’s sights.

“Well then, freckles, ready to follow some leads?”

“Lead on, Kenny.”

The two continued where they left off, marking more footprints along the sandy coast. Before they could go too far the red-haired young woman called back towards the war dog, “Good boy, Nautic! We’re leaving now, come!”

At the sound of the woman’s voice, he bounded after her.

* * *

***Please Note***

* * *

**Kogitsune*:** The name of Kaili’s new weapon is translated (google-certified, as always) to “Little Fox”, which is fitting because it’s only a small dagger compared to a full-length sword. For those of you that want to know, Kogitsune is a Japanese tantō – pretty much just a Japanese dagger. The reason this isn’t explained here is that Kaili isn’t very up to date on the different types of weapons out there (although there might be a certain shop owner in Loguetown who might be able to help her out… *hint* *hint*).

* * *

So, one week from midterms and nearly half the University is sick (myself included). Such fun was had by all.

Aaaaaaanyway,

**Next time on the ToT, a One Piece fanfic...**

When will Kura find out about the wanted poster?

How will Kaili's new weapon settle in?

Will Kroitel and Mirai bump into the Straw Hats in Loguetown?!

Kaili can now hear the actual voices of blades?!

ZORO AND KAILI SPENDING SOME TIME SHOPPING TOGETHER?!

You'll have to tune in next chapter to find out... :3


	19. The Last Stop!

On the Tides of Time 

Chapter 19: The Last Stop (Before the Grand Line)! 

“Everyone! There’s an island!” My voice rang out on the Merry as my eyes caught sight of the blue silhouette that stood out against the light blue sky. 

I had been keeping a close eye on the horizon alongside Merry, the figurehead of which never let our path stray from its unblinking sight. Luffy, who had been tremendously excited by our impending arrival, had kept me company on the front deck for a while until he grew bored of waiting and handed me the task of alerting the crew when an island was in sight. 

With the sound of footsteps approaching the deck, even Zoro had started to move from his place on the back deck, I stood up from the seat Sanji had set up for me (my attempts to refuse his offer had fallen on deaf ears) and tucked Kogitsune’s sheath through the two crossed loops of fabric I had attached to the back of the waistband of my shorts. They were two handy little addition that allowed me to keep the small blade on me without interfering with Kikoeru’s placement across my back, while also allowing me to conceal it decently beneath the collared button-up shirt that flared out from underneath my bustier. While hidden, I could still access Kogitsune’s handle easily through the lengthy side slits of my white shirt – or, for an even quicker (but less stealthy) retrieval, I could simply bunch the fabric up and tuck it between the sheath and my shorts (minus the area that held the Kogitsune in place). 

I still didn’t know how to use Kogitsune effectively, but at least I could clumsily slash the unsuspecting enemy that got too close. 

After Nami had carted off the treasure chest and everyone dispersed, I had planned to ask Zoro for a few tips – and maybe some practice – but I had been too caught up with trying to get Kogitsune to speak to me again. Hence why I had been out on the front deck alone for a few hours under the guise of keeping a lookout for Loguetown. Sure, I was incredibly excited to see another new island (plus, this time it wasn’t chasing down a couple of thieves that stole a couple of ships, which is a bonus) and the way the blue shadow of the island gained a little detail with each passing second as Merry guided us closer… 

But Kogitsune had successfully enraptured most of my attention with its little parlor trick. 

I spent much of the time I had to myself studying the beautiful blade and trying to get some sort of a response in return – to no avail. The blade remained silent, only humming in the same way Kikoeru did when I touched its metal, and left me wondering if I had just been hearing things. After all, my initial thought was to reject the notion that blades could communicate vocally. Sure, with my Sireon ability I could hear them a lot better than most, and as they were slowly developing I could start to piece together the scenery around the blade (as I had done with Kogitsune) …But I never really thought that the ability could bring much more than that. 

It wasn’t until I thought about the encounter we had with Mihawk only a few days ago that I stumbled upon an interesting theory about this whole situation. 

Mihawk had relayed his desires to his blade, but that was probably only possible because he was the best of the best – as I had yet to see such a thing from Zoro (which is weak evidence, but for now it serves to solidify my current theory). Whether he knew that’s what he was doing or not, I had no way of knowing or finding out. Kura, another enigmatic piece in this puzzle, had said at the beginning that ‘only a Sireon could cause Kikoeru’s metal to sing’. While I had assumed at first this meant the humming Kikoeru did, perhaps the pirate meant that Sireons could cause bladed weapons to sing (and by extension, Kikoeru – a bladed weapon). So, ‘Only a Sireon could cause metal to sing’.  

With this in mind, perhaps Sireons were the required for metal to properly ‘sing’? 

It was a bit of a stretch, with the limited information Kura had left me with, but Kogitsune had only spoken when I touched its metal – and maybe that was something I shouldn’t easily ignore. 

“Kailiiiii!” I jumped as Luffy whined next to me, hanging off my shoulder as he looked up at me with a pout, “What’s with that serious face? You need to be much more excited about a new island! I left you with an important job!” 

I blinked, taking in Luffy’s deadpan expression as he looked dejectedly out to the shadow of the island. Shaking off the guesswork I had compiled, I focused on enthusing my captain on the approaching adventure. 

Placing a solemn hand on Luffy’s shoulder, I cleared my throat exaggeratedly as I waited for his attention to turn back to me, “Luffy… I don’t mean to alarm you…” 

His head tilted curiously at me as I continued. 

“But…” A child-like smile spread across my face, and I cupped my free hand over my mouth as if I was telling him the biggest secret in the world, “There’s an island up ahead!” 

Luffy continued staring blankly at me, but before I could amp up my act any more (as I thought I was failing terribly at this point) another excited whisper joined in. 

“What did you just say? An island?! Impossible!” 

Usopp’s long nose crept into view as his head perked up and peered out into the horizon before lowering again and continuing the hushed tone as I removed my hand from Luffy’s shoulder and shifted to allow him into the impromptu triangle that had formed. 

“My god, she’s right, Luffy.” Usopp grinned, flashing me a playful look that told me he knew what I was doing and was joining in on my attempted fun, “It’s  _an island_.” 

“An island?!” The question behind the repeated words could barely be counted as a whisper, and Usopp easily took over, throwing his arms over both of our shoulders and pulling us closer in an impromptu huddle. 

“Yes, it is true – The Great Usopp would never lie about something like  _an island_.” He pulled us in even closer, “Tell me, Kaili… What in the world could  _possibly_  be on that island?” 

With that, Luffy’s blank stare of confusion morphed into an excited one. 

“Why, I don’t know, Usopp.” I shared a knowing grin with Usopp, “That island could have  _anything_  on it.” 

Luffy was now bouncing with excitement. 

“That’s right, Kaili! I think we should start off this discovery with something I have always done upon spotting a new island on the horizon…” 

Usopp broke up the huddle as he placed one foot on top of the deck’s white railing, resting his elbow on his raised knee as he looked off into the distance. After a moment, he focused his gaze on Luffy, shooting a finger towards him abruptly as his face adopted a serious expression and began speaking in a deep sing-song tone. 

*“ _Island~! Oh island on the horizon~!_    
_Here’s to whatever land treasure lies in!_    
_To wonders unknown, like sheep we flock~_    
_Pirates of the Great U-_ _Usopp_ _!”_  

Usopp shifted his posture, placing the hand that had been pointed at Luffy on his hip while the he straightened himself and shot the arm that had been draped over his knee upwards, pointing into the sky, 

_“Night or day, wherever dangers lay…_    
_The path of our ship doesn’t betray!_ ” 

He paused for a moment, and in that moment Luffy and I leaned forward – enraptured by Usopp’s impromptu performance and waiting for the big finish that was building up as Nami, Sanji, and Zoro joined us. Usopp then lowered his finger, pointing now at the island of Loguetown, and paused as the anticipation built. As the bag he carried shifted to find its place with Usopp’s new position, the sniper glanced back at Luffy coolly he continued, 

_“Adventure awaits us, Merry, Go on~!_    
_To the_ ** _mystery_** ** _islands_** _that… dawn!”_  

He emphasized the use of ‘mystery’, and after a second, I realized that it seemed to be something that sent Luffy’s excitement through the roof. His song, obviously created off the top of his head, was certainly not what I expected after Usopp joined in on my attempt to fool around with Luffy. 

**“ALRIGHT!! LET’S GO TO THE MYSTERY ISLAND!”**  Usopp and Luffy danced around, arms linked, as they sang a mismatched tune together. 

With the illusion now broken, I couldn’t help but chuckle at Usopp’s ability to make a performance out of anything, and clapped along to the haphazard rhythm the pair couldn’t agree on as they attempted to sing two different songs, together. 

“Alright, guys-”  

“-Woohoo! Let’s go to the mystery island~!” Luffy was cut short by Nami hitting him over the head. 

“Alright, that’s enough of that nonsense.” As Luffy nursed his head, Nami turned towards Usopp, who whistled innocently and raised his hands in mock surrender while he also somehow managed to pretend he wasn’t part of the ‘nonsense’. With an exasperated sigh, Nami shook her head and everyone instinctively gathered around the navigator as she scouted out the island with the binoculars that hung around her neck. 

After a moment or two, Nami ushered us into the galley, pulling Luffy along by his stretchy ear when he refused to listen to her in favour of complaining about how  _he_  was the only one who got hit (I took this to mean that he knew  _why_  he got hit). As the rest of us sat down at the table, Nami disappeared for a moment before returning with a map in hand, which she spread out for all of us to see. 

“Alright, so this is the island that we’re seeing in the distance,” Nami pointed to a (from what I could tell) decently sized island to the right of the Red Line. The Red Line split up the four Blues vertically – it was a huge and dangerous mountain range which prevented easy travel from one Blue to another. According to the map, water from the four Blues was channeled into a peak of the mountainous Red Line, and where those four lines formed an ‘X’ right in the middle of the peak, another path of water cut through the mountain and created the entrance to the Grand Line: which was located just under the island Nami was pointing to. 

Kura had said that this peak was called Reverse Mountain, and was the only way into the Grand Line because of the two Calm Belts (where no wind blew, and monstrous Sea Kings called those waters home) that lined it. 

“The city that we’re heading to, Loguetown, is famous. It’s also known as ‘The town of the beginning and the end’.” Nami paused, curling her hair behind her ear before continuing, “I’ve heard that it was called that before, because it’s where a lot of people set out to travel the Grand Line – and a lot of them meet their end before they get much farther than the beginning. But even then, not a lot of people went to the Grand Line in droves before the Pirate King, Gold Roger, was executed.” 

Nami allowed that information to settle, before staring directly at Luffy, “Said Pirate King was born in Loguetown, and executed there.” 

Hearing Nami say that a lot of people didn’t make it through the Grand Line should’ve scared me. It did. But the excitement I felt broke my heart free of the shackling fear as my pulse jolted forwards with a newfound energy driving it, if tinted slightly with the telltale tingling of nervousness. The number of people who have travelled the Grand Line (or at least most of it) kept decreasing the more I heard about it. Which means that when we reach the Grand Line, I would have at least seen more than all the people who never ventured into such treacherous waters. As we sailed further, and further, into the Grand Line, all the sights we’ll see along the way… 

I stopped myself, noticing that my thoughts were heading down the wrong path. My dream wasn’t about the lives of other people – it was about how many sights  _I_  would see. How many adventures  _I_  would have. 

Now that we were  _so close_  to the Grand Line, so close that if we looked south I’m sure the waters of the Calm Belt wouldn’t be too far from the horizon… Now that I had made it so far, one question started to plague my thoughts: 

What sort of adventures were waiting for us? 

“Let’s hurry up and get there.” Luffy’s voice broke the muted silence of the galley, “I wanna see the town where the man who got the One Piece – everything this world has to offer – lived and died!”  

At Luffy’s proclamation, Nami nodded and continued with planning our visit. 

“Alright. Loguetown is on the South-East side of the island: right around here.” Nami pointed to the middle of the coastline that faced the Grand Line, “And so we’ll leave Merry to the west of Loguetown, there should be a suitable spot around here,” Nami trailed her finger over the coastline to the left of where she put Loguetown, “so that if we need to make a quick escape, we’ll be able to outrun any pursuers and head straight for the entrance to the Grand Line.” 

Nami led her finger from the south-western coast of the island to the East Blue’s entrance to the Reverse Mountain, drawing attention to the fact that there were no islands in the way. If we left Merry to the right of Loguetown and had to run away from Marines or… well, just them, really, we’d have to either cross over Loguetown’s portside (which risks us getting shot at by the town’s defences), head directly south to avoid the town and risk having the Marines head us off when we looped back around on a course for Reverse Mountain… And if those both failed, we’d have to circle the island, which would also risk the Marines from blocking us from entering the Grand Line. 

Ah, such is the life of a pirate. 

“Even if we’ll have a clean getaway, the key thing to take away from this is to… Not. Get. Noticed.” She sent a pointed look to both Luffy and Zoro, “And what I mean by that is to not get in trouble – which is something you two find yourselves in a lot of normally. Having Luffy in a wanted poster doesn’t help either…” 

Nami sighed, taking a moment to collect her thoughts. 

“So, if we want to get a good start on the Grand Line, we need to make sure we’re not noticed. Or, at the very least, that  _they’re_ ,” I nodded towards Luffy and Zoro, “not noticed right away?” 

“You’ve got it, Kaili.” 

“Wait, why does whether or not we get recognized gonna impact having a good start on the Grand Line?” Usopp scratched his chin, “If we have a clean getaway, Marines shouldn’t be a problem, especially with Kaili on board.” 

“Well, Usopp, if we get chased out before we stock up on supplies, we’ll start short.” Nami counted the scenarios on her fingers, “Even if we make a getaway for now, there’s no reason to believe that the Marines won’t follow us into the Grand Line, and we don’t want them on our heels while we’re trying to figure out such a dangerous place. If they don’t follow us into the Grand Line, they might make a call or two and alert the bases up ahead of our arrival into the Grand Line. Then there’s always the chance that Merry could get hurt-” 

“Alright, alright! I get it now!” 

Nami frowned, “No you don’t. I didn’t make the most important point.” 

“Okay, so what is it?” 

“If we get chased off before I can update my closet, who knows when the next time I’m  _able_  to will come up with the stuff we get roped into!” 

I blinked in surprise, but Usopp easily waved Nami’s last point off, “Yeah, okay. You won’t get some new outfits: it’s a terrible fate. I get it now.” 

“Well, if  _I_  don’t have time to buy clothes,  _you_  don’t have time to buy all of your ingredients or trinkets or whatever and  _Zoro_  doesn’t have time to get two new swords.” Nami raised an eyebrow at the sniper, a smug grin on her face accenting her victory, “And I don’t think we’ll do too well with that sort of handicap.” 

Usopp, as graceful in defeat as he is in his theatrics, “Point taken.” 

“Good. Luffy, are you getting any of this?” 

“Uhhh…” 

Nami sighed, “Luffy, if you get noticed, as you have that bounty on your head, we won’t get any meat.” 

“WHAT?!” Luffy turned his attention to Sanji, demanding that he got more meat as soon as we reached Loguetown. 

“Exactly.” Nami leaned over to me, whispering expertly in my ear as Luffy was now distracted, “Meat is his main motivator, so even if we’ll probably have enough time to get basic supplies – the meat we got from home already has a sizeable dent in it – before he does something stupid, letting him think that we won’t might give us another half hour or so. If he remembers, that is.” Nami straightened up just as Luffy looked back towards her, reassuring the woman that the ‘no meat’ situation had been sorted out. 

With Nami already steering attention back to her next topic of discussion, I felt like I should both be keeping meticulous notes whenever Nami speaks (I would defer to mental notes this time, but maybe in the future I should be more prepared…?) while also seeing Nami in a whole new unsettling light. 

She wasn’t at all like I thought she was, at first, but I suppose she is the one making sure this crew stays out of a Marine prison cell pre-emptively while the others dealt with the problems effectively when they came up. At the very least, I was kind of flattered that she was so reassuring when I had yet to join the Straw Hats – it was clear now why she was happy to have someone who thought a few steps ahead. 

Thinking on it more, ‘unsettling’ was the wrong word to use. 

Sure, I was seeing a new side to Nami, but I didn’t feel like this new aspect was ‘unsettling’. It intrigued me, and I couldn’t help but wonder how many different sides there were to not only Nami, but this whole pirate crew that I felt completely invested in. It might take a while, but I could only hope that one day I’ll get to a point where there would be no new sides to discover. 

Nami certainly wasn’t unsettling, but whenever she was trying to get something from me, I’d be paying a hell of a lot closer attention now.  

“So, to try and prevent anyone from finding out…” Nami looked at Luffy, “Well, if they’ve seen your poster, there probably isn’t much we can do for you.” Nami then turned her gaze on everyone before settling on me, “Everyone else should be okay. Kaili, I’d suggest leaving Kikoeru here on Merry – while you or Usopp aren’t entirely recognizable, and the focus is on Luffy, Kikoeru is pretty easy to pick out. With it being a rather unique sort of weapon – I’ve never really seen anyone use one before – it might stick with somebody.” 

I frowned, not really wanting to leave Kikoeru. Even though I had Kogitsune now, I still had no experience in wielding a dagger… 

“While I know that you haven’t had a lot of time with your dagger, you still have your Devil Fruit to help you get out of most situations.” Begrudgingly, I nodded. Like she said, I did have my Devil Fruit, and if anything happened at least I would be able to use it as practice. 

Kura never really allowed me to solely work on my Devil Fruit Powers, after all. After learning how to use one aspect or another, she’d always make me incorporate it into fighting with her training staff. 

“Thank you, Kaili. Now, all that’s left…” She turned to Zoro, “Your name is known throughout the East Blue, Zoro. While you don’t have a bounty, both your name and three swords has at least reached the ears of most people… With only one sword, it’ll throw people off until you get two more. I’d suggest coming back quickly after that. As for your name…” Nami trailed off, probably thinking out all of the options we had. 

“So what?” Zoro yawned, blinking blearily before he continued, “I’m known as a bounty hunter, not a pirate.” 

“I think we should still be cautious: we shouldn’t call you by your name while in Loguetown... Maybe we could give you a code name?” 

At Nami’s suggestion, Sanji perked up and with a sly smirk, “Moss head*’ll work.” 

Zoro’s drowsiness left him in an instant, “What the hell’d you say, bastard?” 

“You having trouble hearing, moss-for-brains*?” 

Nami rolled her eyes at me as she gestured a hand towards the two men before standing up. With the meeting unofficially ended by Nami, Usopp, Luffy, and I filed out of the galley behind her, leaving the two to argue on their own as Nami had the three of us prepare for our arrival at Loguetown. 

* * *

The large buildings of Loguetown loomed high above me, multiple-storied shops, restaurants, and residences obscured my view of much else. There were a few towers that peaked above the tiled roofs, and a few buildings that dwarfed even the five to six story structures – and a sea of people made their way down the main street that came inland from the harbour. As Nami had led us here, most of the buildings were shops – any who came in through the main harbour would automatically be swept up by the people and merchants who advertised their work in spectacular ways. What I presumed to be an employee from a furniture store had stacked up several chairs on top of each other and balanced himself on them easily (people stopped and watched from outside the roped-off area – probably a precaution put in place by the town), and in another area a few booths were set up for a fishing equipment shop, a man calling out in front of it that if the line broke on the fishing rod (attached to some sort of weights, and passersby could lift up the pole and test out the strength by reeling it in) that they would get some of their products for free. 

As I watched the flood of people from the start of the street, I began to realize the daunting task of walking through a shopping district in an enormous town. 

“Wow! This place is huge!!” Luffy took the scenery in stride, and began vibrating from excitement, “I’m going to go see the execution platform!” 

“Wait, Luffy-!” But, Nami was too late, and our captain’s straw hat was quickly consumed by the crowded street. With our captain a lost cause, Nami pulled the rest of us together and began handing out funds. “We’ll meet up at the Going Merry – That’s probably where Luffy’ll head once he’s done. If you get into trouble, try to lose them in town before heading back.” 

“Alright!” Usopp thumbed his share before stuffing the Berri into his bag, “I’m gonna go find us some equipment!” With a wave, Usopp disappeared into the crowd as well. 

“Thank you, Nami _-swan_ ~!” Sanji accepted his share happily, attempting to amorously hold Nami’s hand for a few seconds longer after she passed the Berri to him. But, as his ploy was seen through and elegantly avoided, he merely lit another cigarette and told us his plans, “It looks like I can get some good ingredients around here – spices, herbs, fresh fish… Not to mention some cute women…”  

He muttered to himself as he headed away from the main street and towards the shaded stalls that lined the harbour I just noticed. As his figure receded, his blonde hair and trail of smoke were visible for a while before he turned the corner. 

“One sword doesn’t exactly suit my three-sword style… I’m gonna look for a weapons shop.” Zoro got his share as well, and after watching the crowd for a while, made his way down the main street as well. 

Then it was just me and Nami left. 

“Uhh… I guess I’ll go and-” I gestured towards the crowd, checking for Grist’s parting gift that I tucked away in my boot. The pouch of 200,000 Berri had been pretty much untouched, and I planned to spend the money on replacing some of the stuff that had sunk with Kura’s ship. The essentials: clothes, hygiene products, and some equipment to take care of Kogitsune and Kikoeru. 

“Not a chance, Kaili!” Nami shot out a hand and grabbed my arm, leading me through the crowd as I followed her clumsily. 

“W-what? Where are we going?” 

Nami smiled back at me, “We’re going shopping for some clothes – us girls need to stick together on this one!” Slowing her pace until I caught up with her, she loosened her grip on my arm but still held on so that we wouldn’t get separated. 

“Since you found me some treasure, I didn’t have to go into my savings! While I can’t charge my normal interest rate, since technically that’s treasure we found as a crew…” She muttered the last part, as if she had been thinking to charge an interest rate besides that fact, “I figured I’d get some clothes shopping done with you so we can be prepared for whatever weather we find ourselves in. Not to mention, I think it’s also about time I started explaining the basics behind the different types of weather so we can begin experimenting with your Devil Fruit.” 

“Ah, I see…” A few moments passed before I squinted my eyes at her suspiciously after a person brushed by us, the large pile of numerous bags and boxes they carried nearly blocking their sight, “You wouldn’t happen to be doing this now so I can carry your bags for you, would you?”   

Nami glanced back at me, “What?” she then sent me a devious smile, “Of course not!” 

Apparently, I already hadn’t been paying enough attention. 

* * *

Chapter 19.5: Unlikely Companions 

* * *

“Hmmm… I wonder if they’re still kicking around on this island…” 

“You said that they were here.” 

“Precisely.” 

The swordsman offered no rebuttal as the white-haired woman squinted at the approaching island, scanning the shore for her crewmates. After a moment, she turned away from the island and looked skyward.  

“Your pet’s coming back so soon?” 

She shrugged, “I like to stay informed.” 

The sound of large wings beating the air accompanied the feathered figure as it drifted down to the small black coloured boat. The black-feathered bird landed, talons grasping the rim of the boat as it bowed its head deeply to the white-blue eyed woman. 

“Kura the Saviour, you’ve been gone a while.” The bird raised its head, “Are you well?” 

“As well as I can be, sailing around with this stick in the mud.” Kura jabbed her thumb back at her companion, “You meet up with Skrayi on your way?” 

The bird glanced in the direction of the man, and at the motion Kura placed a single finger against her lips with a sly smile, “Skrayi’s on his way back to the Nest.” 

“Good, good…” Kura nodded as she opened the bag that the creature carried, rummaging within it before pulling out a folded piece of paper. Closing the bag and replacing the lock, she leaned against the uniquely-shaped mast as she opened up the page and began scanning it quickly. 

 A low growl came from the man, “Kura, stop-” 

Kura removed her weight from the mast before the man could finish, “-stop leaning on the mast, I got it, I got it.” She shook her head, “Jeeze, it’s like an echo with you two. You’re so in sync its scary.” 

“Should I take that as a compliment, Kura?” 

“Take it as another reason you can’t find yourself a date, Mihawk.” She looked back at the forward-facing man, pausing in her reading, “Adding that onto a list of many, it may finally outweigh that gloomy island you found yourself.” 

“Kura-” 

“Yeah, yeah. ‘I’m grateful you guys let me hitch a ride’, yadda yadda*.” She rolled her eyes before returning her attention back to the page, flipping it over, “I wouldn’t worry about it too much, Mihawk. You’ve also got quite the lengthy list that would get you more than one date with more than one girl if you were looking for it.” 

She paused, “Or guy, if you’d prefer.” 

“Kura…” 

“Just teasing Mihawk~! Besides, if you threw me out now, I could easily swim to shore and live yet another day.” 

“Hmph. Don’t tempt me.” 

“Thanks for coming this way, Criath. I’ll send Skrayi her way once he comes back.” With another low bow of the head, the bird released the boat from its talons and with powerful flaps of its wings, took off into the sky. 

“I can feel you plotting back there.” 

“Me? Never.” She flicked the wide-brimmed hat as she clucked her tongue, “Tell Yoru that I’m no such thing.” 

“I’ve already told you-” 

“-To stop with the whole ‘tell Yoru this, tell Yoru that’, but god sometimes its like I’m having two separate conversations with the same person at the same time. So  _I_  end up feeling like I’m just repeating myself over and over again. It’s your turn.” 

“You could just stop talking.” 

“But Mihawk, who then would I share all my deepest darkest schemes with?” She bent down, eyes flashing dangerously at his as her gaze was now unobscured by the sword master’s hat, “Even you seemed particularly interested in one of my most recent schemes.” She dangled the wanted poster of a ‘Monkey D. Luffy’ in front of him before folding it once more and scanning the shore of the island, “You have no  _idea_  how many people would like to hear me talk about… a whole lot of things, really.” 

“I’m well aware of the interest in your numerous plots, Kura.” 

“Really? That’s a shock. Must’ve heard about little ol’ me from all those meetings you don’t go to.” Kura noticed a figure on the beach disappear into the trees, and pointed it out to an disinterested Mihawk, “Ah! They are still here – look at how they scurry off as soon as you show your face, Mihawk!” 

“That man’s so carefree…” 

“Rahaha! Isn’t he?” 

The two landed shortly after, and the Sireon lead the way deeper into the thick jungle, nodding a brief greeting to one or two crewmates that gathered around to watch as the tall figure trailed after her. The trek into the island was silent, but the swordsman opted not to call attention to the much-needed quiet as well as the bounce in the woman’s step. As they made their way to a clearing, a group of pirates lounging around in the sun greeted them. 

“Well now, this is a rare sight: Hawk-Eye and our very own Kura not at each other’s throats?”  

The red-haired man sitting at the center of all the stronger crewmates chuckled lightly before stopping abruptly, “I’m in a bit of a bad mood, Hawk-Eye. You here to fight?” Kura barked out a sharp laugh at the man’s comments before making her way around her crewmates, most of whom gave her a nod in greeting as she passed. 

“Hmph.” Mihawk folded his arms as he watched Kura reach her captain’s side, “I don’t challenge once-armed has-beens, Shanks. I’ve found an interesting pirate who reminded me of a story you told me long ago.”  

Kura held out the wanted poster she had received from Criath, adding onto Mihawk’s explanation as well as creating her own as he took the paper from her hands, “It’s about that little brat in the village we stopped by a looooong time ago. Me and the Echo over there,” She gestured towards the stoic swordsman, “had a little chat about the twerp and the beginnings of his crew. Let’s just say… I’m going to be keeping a  _very_  close eye on them, as will the rest of the world.” 

The shock was tangible, and the silence and surprised expressions were broken by the round pirate eating meat, “You don’t mean-!”  

“Bingo!” 

“So Luffy’s finally made it, huh?” Shanks turned over the wanted poster, quickly reading the words scrawled on the back before a smile broke out on his face, “In that case, let’s celebrate!” 

As Mihawk was drawn into the center of the clearing and took a seat next to Shanks, Kura grabbed one of the drinks being passed around as her crewmates welcomed her back with several more drinks when she quickly finished one after another. 

“So how did you manage to get Hawk-Eye to give  _you_  a ride?” 

And with the telling of that feat, Kura had found her way back home. 

* * *

***PLEASE NOTE***  

* * *

**Usopp’s** **songs*:**  So, these are kinda gonna be a thing, I think. Usopp is awesome, and I love him a lot (if Zoro wasn’t as awesome as he is, this would’ve been an Usopp fan fiction instead). And so, he gets a little something special. As he, as the revered Sogeking, has his own little song and dance number, I figured he might be throwing a few little songs/whatever around every now and then.  

This “Mystery Island” by the Great Usopp is ‘Version 1’ of it. I’ve got a ‘Version 2’ of “Mystery Island” waiting in the wings for when Usopp has some time to refine it, and they start visiting more ‘mystery islands’ in the future, so that he has more experience with them. 

So, for those of you who don’t have a rhythm for Mystery Island V1, here’s a little something to try and explain what I had in mind when writing it (I have no idea how exactly a song works, so this might be more confusing than anything – sorry)! 

/ = where I think a ‘break’ happens 

“ _Island~! Oh island / on the horizon~!_    
_Here’s to whatever / land treasure lies in!_    
_To wonders unknown, / like sheep we flock~_    
_Pirates of the / Great U-_ _Usopp_ _!_  

_Night or day, / wherever dangers lay…_    
_The path of our ship / doesn’t betray!_  

_Adventure awaits us, / Merry, Go on~!_    
_To the_ ** _mystery_** ** _islands_** _/ that… dawn!”_  

Don’t expect much from these: my poetry is sub-par at best, my ability to write songs is even worse. It’s just meant to be a little fun for Usopp’s character. 

**Moss head*:**  Translation of Sanji’s ‘Marimo’ nickname for Zoro. It refers to a species of algae that is green and forms in a ball shape. Sanji uses it to refer to Zoro’s green-coloured hair. 

**Moss-for-brains*:**  Pretty much the same as the nickname above, except this one is referring to not only his hair but also his lack of common sense. (like directions, or his insane ideas that would hurt more than help). 

**Yadda yadda*:**  For those who haven’t heard/used it, this is basically another type of ‘blah, blah’ that indicates a sort of ‘insert more words here which I don’t really care enough to say myself’. 

* * *

So, it's been a while, hasn't it? 

Aaaaaaanyway,

**Next time on the ToT, a One Piece fanfic...**

Who's going to star in the 20.5 chapter (rest assured, if you were getting sick of them - this is the last one for a while)?

How will Kaili's new weapon settle in?

Will Kroitel and Mirai bump into the Straw Hats in Loguetown?!

Some help from Nami about learning what the heck Kaili's DF even does?!

ZORO AND KAILI ACTUALLY TALK?!

You'll have to tune in next chapter to find out... :3

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, Fireflies! I hope you enjoyed it~  
> Chapters 1-5 (and maybe even 6) you might notice are a little different from the rest of the chapters, and that's because my whole concept for my oc's character changed rapidly from this chunk of chapters to the next. It's also why some of her abilities may seem to be introduced a little 'out-of-the-blue'.  
> Please keep in mind that I will be rewriting this once it gets to a certain point to kind of work out the kinks over the course of the story.
> 
> I have a few drawings up on my DeviantArt profile for character references. If you want to check it out, here's a link!  
> http://theemberwoods.deviantart.com/


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